


An Evil Queen and a Savior in Ancient Greece

by wanderingaroundyoutube



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV), Xena: Warrior Princess
Genre: Adventure, Crossover, F/F, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-01-08
Updated: 2014-02-18
Packaged: 2018-01-08 01:02:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 21,902
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1126525
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wanderingaroundyoutube/pseuds/wanderingaroundyoutube
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>During one of her magic lessons, Emma accidentally transports Regina and herself far from Storybrooke, where they have to enlist the help of a certain warrior and bard to get home. But as always, things are never as simple or easy as they should be.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is a Xena/OUAT crossover fic. It contains Xena/Gabrielle and Regina/Emma (swanqueen), but I haven't yet decided how much of each so stay tuned.
> 
> Nothing belongs to me, all mistakes are mine, yada yada yada. You know the drill.

_Thud_

Emma Swan landed on her back with just enough force to knock the air out of her lungs. She lay there for a moment, dazed, with her eyes shut. She heard someone hit the ground a few feet away from her. The 'oof' that followed confirmed it was Regina. She didn't open her eyes to check on the woman quite yet. She wanted a few more seconds of quiet before her girlfriend started scolding her again.

Her head hurt. Regina had been trying to teach her to poof herself around the back yard all morning and the region behind her eyes was pounding from concentrating so hard. But hard as she tried, she just hadn't been able to get it to work. She had barely been able to conjure any magic at all except for three times. The first time she produced a few puffs of smoke without moving at all. A half hour after that she'd turned a rose bush into a vicious Venus Fly Trap type plant that snapped at Henry when he'd come out to tell them he was going to a friends house. The third time she had set Regina's apple tree on fire. The last incident had caused the most trouble of all. Regina had put the fire out quickly, before any harm came to her precious tree, but she'd lectured Emma for almost 15 minutes afterwards. Then, when the blonde had apologized for the tenth time, she'd led Emma further away from the house, to a large open field with no trees or bushes that could be harmed.

This time. Well, she wasn't quite sure what had happened this time. She thought she'd had it. Smoke had swirled around her like when Regina did it, she'd felt like she was floating, then she had felt like she was being pulled sideways and suddenly she was laying on her back in the grass in the shadow of this big tree.

Wait. Tree?

Emma snapped open her eyes and sat up quickly. There had been no trees around her when she'd tried the spell.

"What the…"

She looked up at the tree in confusion. It was definitely not one of the trees from around the Mayoral Mansion. Aside from the apple tree, those were all pine trees. This was definitely not a pine tree. And there were more of whatever it was all around her. She must have actually moved. She'd done it! She didn't know where she had transported herself, but she'd finally done it.

Before she could silently celebrate any more, a groan from her right caused her to remember that she'd brought Regina with her. She turned to see Regina stirring from her position on the ground. Emma jumped to her feet and rushed over to the woman.

"Regina? Are you ok?"

Regina put a hand to her own temple as she shook her head a bit. "I'll probably have a headache tomorrow, but I'm fine." She looked up at Emma. "What happened?"

"I did it! I moved. Or, we moved. Sorry about that. I know I was only supposed to poof myself. But, hey! I did it!"

She was cut short by a glare from the woman who was now slowly picking herself up from the ground.

"Are you sure you're ok?" Emma asked warily, her eyes scanning the woman for injuries. "It sounded like you hit the ground pretty hard."

"I'm alright, Emma." Regina assured the concerned blonde. She dusted the last of the dirt from her pants and looked around. "Where are we?"

"I… uh… I'm not sure."

Regina's eyebrows creased in confusion. "What do you mean you're not sure? Where were you trying to go?"

Emma looked a little sheepish. "Uh, the back porch?"

Regina glanced sideways at her as she continued to look around. "This is not the back porch."

"Yeah, I noticed."

"We aren't even in Storybrooke anymore." Regina snapped.

"We're not?" Emma looked around again.

"No, we are not. There are no olive trees in Storybrooke."

Emma glanced upwards. "So that's what it is. I thought it looked familiar." Now that she knew what the tree was, she started searching it's branches, hoping to find a ripe olive or two. They'd been working hard all morning and hadn't stopped for lunch. She was starting to get hungry.

"You don't seem concerned about the fact that we have no idea where we are, _Ms. Swan_."

Emma turned at Regina's use of the title. Regina rarely called her Ms. Swan anymore. Only when she was irritated with her.

"Oops, sorry. I guess I got a little caught up in my excitement about actually having moved. I don't recognize this place. Do you have any idea where we might be?"

Regina glared at Emma for a few more seconds before deciding to let it go. She shrugged. "Somewhere Mediterranean I'd guess. Italy? Greece?"

Emma's jaw dropped. "Greece?!"

"Close your mouth, dear. You look like a codfish."

Emma closed her mouth  but continued staring at Regina with wide eyes. "You think I transported us (both of us) all the way to Greece?"

Regina just nodded. "Or some other Mediterranean country. We're not far from the sea. I can smell the water."

"But, that's thousands of miles away. I didn't know it was possible to teleport that far."

"It's possible, but usually not without years of practice. Normally, it wouldn't be possible for a novice. But you are the Savior, Emma. It makes sense that your magic would be stronger than the average magic user. It's also why these lessons are so important. If you can transport the two of us halfway across the world by accident who knows what else you could accidentally do. The only way you're ever going to be able to safely use magic is if you practice."

Emma looked a bit nervous. "All the way to the Mediterranean. Wait, how do you know what the Mediterranean looks like? You've been in Storybrooke your entire time in this world."

"I may have never traveled outside Storybrooke, but the internet is very informative. I've done quite a bit of research on the different popular vacation destinations of this world since the curse broke and this definitely looks like the pictures I've seen of the region."

"You've been researching vacation spots?" Emma asked, confused.

Regina cringed and suddenly looked as though she'd said something she shouldn't have. "Well, yes. I…I was thinking it might be nice to get away for a week or two as a family. You, me and Henry. It was supposed to be a surprise."

Emma broke into a huge grin. "A family vacation? All three of us?"

Regina looked irritated at herself. "Yes. The three of us."

"Where are we going to go, the three of us?"

Emma took a step forward, intending to steal a kiss. But Regina matched her movement with a step backwards, keeping them a safe distance apart. 

"We can discuss vacationing later. For now we need to concentrate on getting home."

Emma pouted, but nodded her head. "So, can you poofus back?"

"I think that'd be safest. God knows where we'd end up if you try it again."

She walked forward, took Emma's hand in her own and closed her eyes. Emma waited, but nothing happened.

"Uh, Regina?"

"Shh, my magic is funny outside Storybrooke. Give me a second to… ah, there."

There was a puff of purple smoke around them, obstructing everything from view. When it cleared, Emma looked around hopefully, only to discover they hadn't moved. Regina made a frustrated noise. She tried again with the same result.

"Should I try?"

"I suppose so." Regina huffed. "But be careful."

Emma closed her eyes and concentrated on Storybrooke. But nothing happened. Not even the slightest tingle of her magic. She sighed as she gave up and opened her eyes.

"So, no poofing home then?"

"I guess not." Regina's shoulders slumped and Emma could sense her frustration. She immediately stepped in front of Regina and put her hands on the woman's shoulders.

"Hey. It's fine. So I got us stuck somewhere halfway around the world. We'll figure out another way back. I'll just have to practice a bit more before teleporting again. Eventually I'll get it right. Or," she paused, thinking, "we'll think of something, right? Worst case scenario, we can call Mary Margaret and David and have them send us some money to get home."

"What about Henry?" Regina asked, still worried.

"We'll call home first phone we find. He can stay with his grandparents if we're longer than a few hours getting back."

Emma smiled, proud of her plan, as Regina became a little less rigid and nodded.

"Good. So we have a plan. Now we just need to find a phone." She looked around, as if expecting a payphone to materialize out of thin air.

Regina shook her head and rolled her eyes. "It looks like there is a break in the trees over there. Let's go see if we can get our bearings."

They walked through the grove of olive trees until they reached the open. As they exited the trees, Emma gasped. They were standing at the top of a large hill looking out over a low field. At the other side of the field another, larger hill rose up to form a sort of valley below. There were a few trees in the valley, but it was mostly filled with long grass and what looked like wild Rosemary bushes covered in hundreds of small purple flowers. It was breathtaking.

At the bottom of the hill they were standing on, Emma saw a worn dirt road of some kind. It didn't look like much, but at least it was a sign of civilization. She looked over at Regina, then led the way down the hill.

"Well," Regina said when they reached the bottom,  "it looks well traveled. A bit primitive, though. I doubt people bring cars along here. Probably just horses and wagons. We must not be near a big city."

"OK, but even a small town will have a phone, right? Which direction do you think?" Emma took a few steps in one direction, trying to see around the bend of the hill a hundred yards away.

Before Regina could answer, they heard the sound of a horse whinny from the direction Emma was facing. Regina turned to look just in time to see two people and a horse round the bend. From this distance they could tell that they were both women. The brunette was riding the horse while the blonde walked alongside. They were too far away to tell any more about them.

"What do you think, Emma?" Regina asked Emma, who was standing a few yards ahead of her.

Emma shrugged, her back still to Regina. "They look friendly enough I guess. It's hard to tell from this distance. It's funny. I've never been to the Mediterranean, but I swear they look familiar." She took a few more steps forward and squinted then stopped dead in her tracks.

"It can't be." Emma whispered so Regina couldn't make out what she'd said.

"What was that?"

Emma shook her head as she turned and walked back towards Regina. "Nothing, nothing. I'm sure it's fine."

"Emma..."

"Really, Regina. It's fine. I thought for a second... But that would be impossible..."

Regina raised an eyebrow. "Said the Savior to her girlfriend, the reformed Evil Queen, after accidentally transporting them halfway across the globe in a world that's not supposed to have magic."

Before Emma could respond, there was a cough from behind her. She spun around to find the two women (and their horse) now stopped just a few yards away.

"Good afternoon," said the blonde, cheerfully, "my name is Gabrielle. And this is Xena."

Emma didn't respond. She was too busy staring, mouth dropped open again, at the woman sitting on the horse dressed in leather and armor. Then, as the silent warrior raised a single eyebrow, Emma fainted. 


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm hoping to post a new chapter every week (writing speed, inspiration, and life allowing). I'm aiming for Wednesdays, but this chapter was burning a hole in my pocket so you get it a day early.   
> As always, I hope you enjoy it. And feel free to comment.

"Emma!" Regina jumped forward too late to reach the blonde, who crumpled towards the ground. Luckily Gabrielle was close enough to catch her before she hit the hard dirt.

"What happened?" Xena asked as she quickly dismounted from her horse. "Is she sick?"

Regina ignored the woman as she shook Emma's shoulders. "Emma. Emma, wake up. Emma Swan you will wake up right now or I will throw away your red leather jacket."

Emma didn't open her eyes, but her eyebrows raised at Regina's words. "No you won't. You secretly love my red leather jacket." She looked up at Regina, who still looked concerned. "What happened?"

"You fainted." Gabrielle replied.

"I don't faint. I never…" Emma trailed off as she looked at Gabrielle, then Xena, then back to Gabrielle. The bard looked at Emma as if she was concerned Emma might faint again. The warrior just stared back at her with an unreadable expression.

"Emma? Are you alright?" Regina asked, concerned.

"Regina," Emma whispered carefully as she got to her feet, "exactly how many myths and legends and fairy tales are based on real people who live in different worlds?"

Regina was confused by the sudden change of subject, but her voice didn't show it. "Most of them, I suppose. Why?"

Emma turned and looked at Regina. The look on her face made Regina's stomach drop. "Because I think I know where we are. And if I'm right, getting home is going to be a lot more complicated than a phone call and an airplane."

"What are you talking about?" Regina asked the blonde slowly.

Emma looked over towards Xena and Gabrielle. She looked at them hopefully as she asked, "You're not just dressed up, are you? Cosplayers or something?"

"Cos-what?" Xena asked.

"What's an airplane?" Gabrielle asked at the same time, as she examined Regina and Emma's strange clothing.

Emma sighed and rubbed her face with her hand. "Yeah, I thought so."

"Emma," Regina put her hand on the woman's arm, "what's going on?"

Emma took a deep breath and said quickly, "We're not in the Mediterranean."

Regina just looked at her for a moment, then her eyes went wide as she realized what the blonde was implying. "You think we jumped worlds?!"

"Well, the evidence would suggest that's the case." She waved towards the now very confused warrior and bard. "Regina, may I introduce Xena, the Warrior Princess, and Gabrielle, the Battling Bard of Potidaea."

"You know of us?" Gabrielle asked.

"Yeah, well. They made a TV show about you back where we come from. Well, not where we come from. We're both originally from the Enchanted Forest, I guess. But I grew up in the States. Less ogres, more lawyers. You don't have ogres in this world, do you? One experience with those was enough to last me multiple lifetimes."

Xena eyed Emma and Regina like they were crazy. She walked forward and put her hand on Gabrielle's arm. "Right. Well, we should be going now." She pulled Gabrielle back and started walking in a wide circle around them.

"No, Wait!" Regina quickly went into Mayor/Queen mode. "Please forgive my companion," Emma made a face at the word, but Regina ignored her, "we are travelers from a land very far away and very different from this one. We're looking for a way home. My name is Regina, and this is Emma. She has a tendency to ramble, but she's harmless."

Xena studied Regina for a moment, trying to determine if she was dangerous or not. She seemed to decide the latter because she smiled at Regina and jerked her head towards her short haired companion. "They have something in common then. This one never stops rambling."

"Ha ha ha." Gabrielle said sarcastically. "She thinks she's so funny when she says that. But she knows perfectly well that my rambling has gotten her out of trouble more times than there are stars in the sky." She elbowed the warrior in the side. "And by the way, Xena. Don't think I haven't realized that you just lost our little wager."

Xena took a step away front the bard and changed the subject quickly. "So, which way are you headed? You're welcome to walk with us if you like. There's a village a few miles from here. The tavern there makes great stew."

At the mention of food Emma's stomach rumbled loudly. She looked pleadingly at Regina, who shrugged. "We might as well. It's not like we're getting home anytime soon. Lead the way."

They walked slowly along the road. Xena and Regina walked silently ahead with the horse, listening as Gabrielle threw question after question at Emma.

"You said you knew us from a... what did you call it?"

"A tv show. It's kind of like... like a play I guess. Or a series of plays." Emma explained. "Each one is about an hour long, and they run 20 to 25 of them a year. The one about you two was pretty popular. It ran for 6 years."

"Six years?!" Gabrielle exclaimed in shock. "How on earth did they even know about us in your world, let alone tell stories about us for six whole years?"

"They didn't make it all up." Emma explained. "They had these scrolls. Hey, I bet they were your scrolls!"

Gabriele looked confused. "My scrolls? But my scrolls were lost. How would they... Oh! They somehow made it to your world!"

Emma shrugged. "I guess so. I'm not exactly sure how it works, but I guess stuff leaks through sometimes. That's how the people in my world know about Snow White and Regina, or Peter Pan, or Mulan."

"Did you say Mulan?" Xena broke in from ahead of them. 

"You've heard of her?" Regina asked, surprised.

Xena laughed. "Heard of her? We met her and another woman, Aurora, a few months ago. We helped them find a friend of theirs,  a prince, who had been sent to this world by a wraith." 

Emma smiled. "Phillip? I'm glad they found him. It's kind of our fault they lost him in the first place."

Gabriele raised her eyebrows. "Oh, I'd love to hear the story from your point of view. I'm planning on writing the story down so others can hear it. But first, you were saying about my scrolls?"

"Right, your scrolls. They must have jumped worlds somehow. Though they must have also been sent back in time too because archaeologists found them in my world almost a hundred years ago."

"Time moves a little bit differently in each world." Regina provided from up ahead. "And the gaps that people and things sometimes fall through aren't linked up to other words as securely as portals. They shift around a little and things are thrown out across wide gaps of time."

They had reached the village while they'd been talking. They were just coming to the main gate when Emma nodded, "So someone dug up your scrolls from a cave somewhere, and they sat around in museums until one day somebody got the idea to tell the stories that were in them. And that's when the show was born."

"I still don't understand how they told stories about us for six years though." Gabrielle said. "I never wrote that many scrolls."

"I think they probably took artistic license sometimes. There's no way every episode was based on an actual scroll. Like the very last episode. In the show, Xena died. But Xena is obviously still alive and kicking. So I'm guessing they made up that Akemi woman."

At The mention of the name, Xena stopped dead in her tracks. She didn't turn around but Emma could tell by the sudden stiffness of the warrior's shoulders that that the name had hit a nerve.

"Or, maybe that one was true?" Emma said slowly as she looked over at Gabrielle, who had also stopped moving. The bard said nothing. She just stared at Xena's back looking lost and hurt.

The silence stretched to an uncomfortable length. Emma began to worry that she'd just lost them the only two friends they had in this world when Xena spoke, her voice lower than before.

"She existed."

The tone of Xena's voice told Emma she'd definitely made a mistake mentioning the name.

"I'm sorry. I didn’t mean to bring up bad memories."

Xena sighed and turned around. "It's alright, Emma. We just don't talk about it much. It was a difficult time." She looked at Gabrielle for permission to continue. When the bard nodded, Xena went on. "Your writers got it wrong, though. I didn’t die. Akemi tried to trick me using my guilt. She wanted to use my death to bring herself back to life. But Gabrielle figured it out in time."

"Well I wasn't about to let some ghost take my soul mate away from me." Gabrielle said stubbornly.

Emma perked up a little. "So you really are soul mates? Like 'soul mate' soul mates? 'Amazon Queen and her consort' soul mates?"

Xena raised one eyebrow. "I am no one's consort. We're married. The ceremony was performed by the Amazon high priestess herself."

Emma froze and looked back and forth between the two.

Suddenly, she jumped into the air and did a little dance. "You're married! I knew it! I knew it was more than just subtext!"

Gabriele looked at Regina and asked, "What is she talking about?"

Regina shook her head. "I don't watch much television, but I'd guess that the show about you two never made the true extent of your relationship official."

"Sorry." Emma said once she'd calmed down. "The debate has been going on for years whether you two were... are a couple."

There was an awkward silence for a minute, which was broken by Gabrielle.

"Er, right. Uh, why don't we get something to eat at the tavern and you can tell us about yourselves."

Emma's stomach growled again, louder than before. She looked embarrassed, but Regina just laughed and slipped her arm through the blonde's. "Alright, Sheriff. Let's get you something to eat."

"As long as it's not chimera." Emma whined as she thought back to her last meal in a strange world.

Xena led her horse towards the stables as the other three walked towards the tavern.

"After you, your majesty." Emma gave a dramatic bow as she held the door open for Regina.

A barmaid eyed Regina and Emma warily when they entered, but as soon as Gabrielle walked in behind them she nodded and directed them to a table in the back of the room. The room was mostly empty, as it was too late for lunch and too early for dinner. A fire was flickering in a stone fireplace next to their table. There was a man sitting at the bar, but he had a hood up so they couldn't see his face.

"Four mugs of ale please." Gabrielle said as they sat down. "And four bowls of whatever that lovely smell is."

Their food arrived just as Xena joined them. Regina took a bite and smiled. "Oh my. I haven't had lamb stew this good since I was back in my kingdom."

With the confirmation that the food was something she was familiar with, Emma dug in.

"So," Xena said, "You seem to know a lot about us. Tell us about yourselves. Did you say 'my kingdom', Regina? Are you royalty?"

"Oh, yeah." Emma said through a mouthful of stew. "She's the Evil Queen."

"The Evil Queen?"

Regina shook her head. "Not anymore. I was Queen. For a time. The 'evil' was added by Snow White. Don't get me wrong though. I earned the title. I did a lot of bad things back then, including cursing the entire kingdom to a town where time was frozen and I was Mayor. Emma is Snow's daughter. She escaped the curse and grew up outside the town."

Gabrielle interrupted at the mention of frozen time. "So Emma aged, while everyone else stayed the same age?"

"Yeah," Emma said, "So now I'm sort of the same age as my parents. It's weird. I try not to think about that part too hard."

"So how did you two come together?"

Regina chuckled and went on. "Emma had a son outside of Storybrooke. By some coincidence or trick of fate I adopted him. When he was 10, he figured out that he was the only one in town who wasn't aging and went looking for Emma. He brought her back to town and after I tried to kill her a few times, she broke the curse." Regina glanced at Emma with a smile. "She saved everyone, including me."

Emma returned her smile and reached over to take Regina's hand.

"You tried to kill her? And now you're together?" Xena asked.

Emma shrugged. "Love is weird."

"That it is." Gabrielle smiled knowingly before asking, "What are you doing so far from home?"

Regina, now recovered, took a sip of her ale before responding. "We're here by accident. I was teaching Emma to use her magic, and she somehow teleported us both here. I'm still not sure how she managed it. Traveling between worlds is supposed to only be possible by portal."

"Like the one Mulan, Aurora, and Phillip used to get back to their world." Gabrielle provided.

Regina nodded. "Exactly. I don't suppose they left behind any magic beans?"

"No." Xena shook her head. "They only had the one they used to get home."

"If you used magic to get here, why not just use it to get back?" Gabrielle chimed in.

"We both tried." Emma replied. "But Regina's magic isn't strong enough, and I still don't know enough to teleport even a few feet. Like Regina said, when I transported us here it was by accident. I was just trying to move across a field."

"We'll just have to find some other way home." Regina said glumly.

Emma squeezed her hand. "We'll figure something out. I know we will."

"Maybe we can help," Gabrielle suggested.

"How?" Regina asked

"There is magic here too. Maybe not the same kind as where you're from, but there must be some way of getting you home."

"You have an idea?" Xena asked Gabrielle.

"A god might be able to send them back." The Bard suggested.

"Are you kidding me?" Xena said in disbelief. "You know what gods are like, Gabrielle. Getting one of them to do us a favor would be almost impossible. None of them would ever agree to it. Not without getting a favor in return. And you know what happens when we owe gods favors."

Gabrielle shrugged and opened her mouth to respond, but was cut off by a voice from across the room.

"Well, you could always try asking nicely."

Emma and Regina turned around to see who'd spoken as Xena and Gabrielle jumped from their seats. The man who'd been sitting at the bar since they arrived turned and flipped back his hood. He was tall and tan and dressed in all black with a sword at his waist. His hair was longer than it had been on the TV show, but Emma recognized him immediately.

Xena let out a low growl as she spat out the man's name.

"Ares"


	3. Chapter 3

"Ares?" Regina questioned. "As in God of War Ares?"

Ares stood and gave a dramatic bow. "The one and only."

"Cool!" Emma said, excitedly.

When Ares smirked, Gabrielle looked sideways at Emma and warned, "Don't encourage him, Emma. He's got a big enough ego already."

"What do you want, Ares?" Xena snapped at the god.

Ares feigned hurt, putting his hand over his heart as he walked over to their table.

"Gabrielle, you wound me. Who says I want anything? Maybe I'm just here to help. Free of charge. No strings attached. "

Gabrielle rolled her eyes. "Yeah, right. The day you offer to help someone out of the kindness of your own heart is the day Tartarus freezes over. What do you want?"

Ares dropped his act and shrugged. "Ok, ok. So maybe I just have one tiny favor to ask in return for helping your very attractive," he looked Regina up and down and got a glare in return, "new friends here."

"Not interested." Xena deadpanned. She sat back down and resumed eating her stew as if Ares wasn't even there.

"You don't even know what it is yet. Come on, Xena." When he got no response, Ares turned to Gabrielle, suddenly looking almost desperate. "Gabrielle, you've got to at least hear me out. The favor isn't even really for me. It's for Aphrodite."

This caught Xena's attention and she put down her spoon. She turned back to the god and watched him carefully as she asked, "If Aphrodite needs our help, why isn't she here asking us herself?"

Ares sighed, "Because she lost her ability to move. To flash. You know…" He snapped his fingers and was suddenly standing a few feet from where he'd been.

There was silence as the warrior and bard looked at each other for a long moment. Xena raised an eyebrow and Gabrielle tilted her head in response. They seemed to have a whole conversation without saying a word. Then, when Xena sighed, Gabrielle gestured for Ares to join them at the table and she took her seat again. "We're listening."

"I really hate it when you two do that. It's freaky." Ares muttered as he grabbed a chair from a nearby table and pulled it over. He spun it around so he sat straddling the seat with his arms folded, resting on the back. "Aphrodite's power is fading." He said simply.

Emma looked skeptical. "What do you mean her power is fading? She's a god, isn't she? How can her power be fading?"

Gabrielle explained, "The strength of a god's powers are based on people's belief in the forces they represent. If people's faith weakens, so does the god."

Ares nodded at Gabrielle's explanation then went on. "She's been grounded since this morning, Xena. She's stuck down here and can't get back to Olympus."

"You seem to be holding up ok." Xena observed.

Ares threw up his hands and looked up at the ceiling as if to say mortals. "Of course I'mok. I'm the god of War. War is easy. There will always be disagreements. And disagreements are easy to manipulate into feuds and wars. But love is harder. More delicate. People don't believe in true love or soul mates anymore. Not the way they used to. And that's where the big power comes from."

"What can we do to help?" Gabrielle interrupted.

Ares shrugged. "She didn't tell me that. She just said to find you."

"Where is she?" Xena asked.

"She was grounded while visiting her temple in Athens. She's still there, moping."

Regina looked skeptically at the God of War. "And if we help Aphrodite get her powers back, you'll send Emma and I home?"

"You have my word."

Emma looked at Xena.

"Do you trust him?"

Xena eyed Ares. "About as far as I can throw him."

"Which, for a mortal, is surprisingly far," Ares joked.

"He'll keep his word." Xena said.

"Ok, then." Gabrielle nodded. "Let's go see Aphrodite."

"Great." Ares clapped his hands together. "I'll go tell her you're on your way." And with a flash, he disappeared.

Gabrielle threw her hands up in frustration. "He could have just taken us to her. One snap of his fingers and we'd be in Athens."

"Gods" Xena said with a shake of her head.

Emma looked around the table. "So, we walk to Athens then?"

 

* * *

 

"How much farther?" Emma wined, shuffling along at the back of the group.

They'd been walking for three hours. She'd walked alongside Regina and Gabrielle most of the way, listening as the two talked about what plants were best for cooking and medicines. But she'd fallen beck a bit in the last half hour. Her feet hurt and she was tired. This alone wouldn't normally have been enough to bother her. But she didn't like the idea of being out on the road at night in a strange land and the darkening sky was starting to make her nervous.

Xena glanced over her shoulder from atop her horse. "We're making pretty good time. I think we should be there by tomorrow afternoon."

"Where will we sleep tonight?" Regina suspected she already knew the answer, but she had recognized the tone in the blonde's voice so she asked anyway to save the woman from sounding completely out of her element.

Xena pointed. "There's a good place to make camp just ahead and off the road a bit."

"We're sleeping outside?" Emma tried not to sound worried, but Gabrielle caught a hint of it.

"Xena and I have camped there loads of times. It's comfortable enough. And we've never run into any trouble there." She laughed. "Which, for Xena and I, is saying something."

Emma's shoulders slumped as she muttered to herself. "Walking everywhere. Sleeping outside. This is turning out just like that time with Snow in Fairy Tale Land."

Regina slowed until she and Emma were walking side by side. She put her arm around the pouting Sheriff's waist and said softly, "Yes, but you didn't have me with you then. I may not be able to magic us home, but I'm sure I can conjure us up a couple of sleeping bags and anything else we might need."

Emma straightened her shoulders a bit as she countered, "A couple of sleeping bags? Oh no, Regina. If we're sleeping outside, you and I are sharing a sleeping bag."

When Regina's eyebrow raised suggestively, Emma blushed and hastily added, "For warmth. I meant for warmth."

Regina decided not to mention the fact that it had been the middle of June when they left Storybrooke and it seemed to be even warmer here.

Ahead of them, Xena had stopped and gotten down from her horse. She and Gabrielle led them off the road to the right and into the trees. After a few minutes of walking, they came to a small clearing with what looked like a well used fire pit in the center.

"Emma, Regina. Why don't you two gather some firewood while Gabrielle and I make camp." Xena suggested. Regina nodded and led Emma towards a promising patch of trees.

"Remember to gather some kindling too," Gabrielle called after them.

She and Xena quickly unfurled their bedrolls next to each other to one side of the pit. Xena piled a couple of their extra blankets a few feet away for Emma and Regina to use, then sat down next to Gabrielle, who had pulled a loaf of bread and some cheese from one of their bags. They sat quietly, enjoying the silence as they prepared the food.

Just as they'd finished dividing the food onto four wooden plates, they heard the sounds of the mayor and sheriff returning. Emma and Regina came back into the cleaning both carrying big armfuls of wood. Emma dumped hers off to the side to add to the fire through the night while Regina made a pile in the pit.

Xena stood, a flint in her hand, but Regina waved her away. "No need."

Regina opened her hand and produced a fireball, which she quickly sent towards the waiting fire pit. The kindling caught quickly and flames began to lick at the larger logs.

She pretended not to notice the two women sitting, mouths hanging open in surprise on the other side of the now roaring fire, and instead turned to the bedding. She waved her hand at the two threadbare blankets and after a few moments they were replaced with a wide, fluffy sleeping bag, two small pillows, and a blanket. Emma, who had grabbed their plates while Regina worked, sat down on the makeshift bed and nodded her approval.

"Wow," Gabrielle's stunned voice said to Regina's left. "That was impressive."

"It's just a simple spell." Regina said in a casual but superior tone that made Emma roll her eyes. She sat down next to Emma and took a plate of bread and cheese.

"Still. The ability to just wave your hand and make things appear." Xena eyed the two women a little warily. "You say you're completely reformed from being this Evil Queen you mentioned before? You throw those powers of yours around like a few Olympians I've known."

Regina opened her mouth to respond, but Emma spoke first. "She's not that person anymore. She's changed."

"Ok," Xena said, and went back to her food.

"What? That's it?" Emma sounded like she'd been expecting a fight.

Xena just shrugged. "I believe you."

When Emma looked slightly disappointed, Regina laughed. "It's ok, Emma. You can defend my honor another time."

They settled into a comfortable silence. The long walk was finally catching up to them and none of them had much energy for mindless small talk. When they were all done eating, Xena stretched and suggested they all get some sleep. Emma looked around at the surrounding trees. "Do we need to take watches or something? In case someone comes across our camp?"

"Nah," Gabrielle said confidently. "Like I said before, Xena and I have never had trouble at this campsite. Nobody else knows this spot is here. And they're not going to go trudging through the trees. Anybody traveling at night will stick to the road. Besides, Xena has ears like a bat. And she's a light sleeper. She'd wake up long before somebody got close enough to even see our fire."

"I cast a few perimeter warning spells while we were gathering firewood, too." Regina added as she fluffed her pillow. "Anything that isn't a deer or a rabbit that comes within fifty yards of us will set off such a loud noise that we'll all wake up." She nudged Emma. "C'mon, Emma. Let's get some sleep. We've got a lot more walking to do tomorrow. We'll need all the rest we can get. Goodnight, Xena. Goodnight, Gabrielle."

Emma took off her boots and her jacket and settled next to Regina. They both lay on their backs, looking up. There wasn't a cloud in the sky and without the electric lights of a city they could see hundreds of stars. It was different from the night sky at home, but somehow still familiar. Emma thought she could see a sort of squished version of Scorpio. But she guessed she must be imagining things. Whether it was their sky or not though, it was still breathtaking. And as a shooting star streaked across the sky, Regina reached over and took Emma's hand.

Emma turned her head so she could see Regina smiling as she looked up at the stars. It was a smile that only Emma and Henry ever got to see. The other residents of Storybrooke had mostly forgiven Regina for the things she'd done in the past, but Regina still kept her guard up around everyone. Except when she was with Emma and Henry. When they were all alone at home, or when she thought no one else was watching, she would let down her walls. And now, as Regina looked at the strange sky above them, all her walls came down. Not many people besides Emma knew how much Regina loved looking at the stars. Tonight was no exception. Her eyes darted back and forth, trying to take in every detail of the twinkling sky. When a shooting star suddenly flew past, Regina's smile grew wider and she tilted her head back to follow it until it disappeared behind the trees.

Sensing she was being watched, Regina turned her head to look at Emma.

"What?" She asked when she saw Emma studying her.

"It looks good on you." Emma said quietly.

"What does?"

"Wonder"

Regina turned back to the sky but scooted over until her head was resting on Emma's shoulder.

"Goodnight, Emma."

"Goodnight, Regina. Sweet dreams."


	4. Chapter 4

"A little to the left. No, my left."

"Will you be quiet. You're going to wake them up."

"They're fast asleep, Xena. Now, up a little. Ah, that's the spot."

Emma's eyes snapped open as a moan came from the other side of the fire. She held her breath and tried to stay perfectly still. Unfortunately, Gabrielle hadn't been exaggerating when she said Xena had great hearing.

"See, I told you. You woke Emma up." Xena scolded Gabrielle before addressing the other blonde, who was trying not to move. "Sorry this loudmouth woke you, Emma. She never could keep it down during a foot rub."

Emma carefully moved Regina's arm from across her waist and sat up. She looked across the camp and almost laughed out loud at what she saw. Gabrielle was lying on their bed roll with her eyes shut. Her feet were in Xena's lap as the warrior massaged them.

"I lost a bet." Xena explained. "I bet Gabrielle we'd make it all the way to Athens without running into someone who needed help."

"And she lost. Like she always does." Gabrielle boasted before opening her eyes and turning her head so she could see Emma.

"I'm sorry I woke you."

"It's ok." Emma said, stretching. "I was mostly awake anyway."

Emma turned when she felt something tug at her shirt. Regina had stirred when she sat up and was now sleepily trying to pull her back down.

"Come back to bed." The brunette murmured without opening her eyes.

"As much as I would love to spend all morning snuggling," Emma teased. "it's time to get up. We have to get to Athens if we're going to get home."

"Athens?" Regina asked ask she sat up and yawned. "Oh, right. Aphrodite."

"Right then." Xena said as she pushed Gabrielle's feet from her lap. "Now that you two are up we can start moving. The sooner we start, the sooner we can get to Athens."

"And the sooner we get to Athens, the sooner I can get back to a real bed." Emma said as she cracked her back.

Xena and Gabrielle quickly rolled up their bedroll and Regina rolled up the sleeping bag, blanket and pillows. She somehow managed to roll them all up into one small package that strapped easily to Xena's horse with the other bags. Then they picked their way back through the forest to the road, snacking on a light breakfast of more bread and some berries as they walked.

 

The road was quiet. Every once in a while they passed a slow moving wagon loaded with merchandise and supplies for the city. But for the most part they had the road to themselves. Gabrielle took the time to quiz Regina about her experiences with the wraith. Gabrielle listened intently and asked a lot of questions. Every once in a while she made notes on a scroll she'd pulled from one of her packs. Regina told the bard everything. She explained how Rumplestilskin marked her, with a small sidebar to explain who Rumplestilskin was. Then she explained how Emma, Snow, and Charming had fought the wraith off with desk chairs and a makeshift flamethrower. And finished with trying to trap the wraith at city hall and send it through a portal. That brought them up to the point when Emma and Snow had fallen through the portal to the Enchanted Forest, which Emma had to tell because Regina went suddenly quiet.

Gabrielle was polite enough not to ask why Regina suddenly lost interest in talking, and neither of Emma nor Regina offered an explanation. Regina and Emma hadn't been in a relationship yet at that point in the story, but Regina still felt a pang of fear when she thought about the those days. Sure, she and Emma fought like cats and dogs, but Henry loved his birth mother and he was devastated when she disappeared. She had tried to keep his spirits up, but no one had known if Snow and Emma were even alive at first. And after they'd made it back, Emma's belief in her had been a big help in helping her to start healing from the old wounds that fueled her 'evil'actions. She often wondered if she would have been able to change if Emma hadn't been there voicing her belief in Regina's ability to change to anyone who questioned it.

When Regina tuned back into the conversation again, Gabrielle and Emma had moved on to discussing Storybrooke and the world around it. Emma explained everything from cars to telephones to fast food to the fascinated bard. When they reached the main gate to enter Athens, Emma was waving her arms enthusiastically as she described airplanes.

"People flying like birds? That's ridiculous." Xena said.

"Says the woman who can launch herself from a tree onto a ship." Countered Gabrielle. "I think it sounds amazing. I bet you can see for miles and miles from up that high."

"Yeah, it's pretty cool." Emma trailed off as she tried to take in everything around them. They had entered the city and were now walking through a marketplace filled with shops and stalls. In one stall there were fruits and vegetables of every size and color. In a shop next door there were rabbits and chickens hanging in the window. As they walked on they passed stalls selling clothing, weapons, armor, and dozens of other things.

Regina was taking everything in with less awe and more curiosity. This land was definitely different from the Enchanted Forest, but it was the closest thing she'd seen to her homeland in nearly thirty years. She watched people haggling with merchants to get lower prices. She paused in front of a stall selling dresses to examine the workmanship of a particularly beautiful one. And she looked on with something like nostalgia as a man bought a stuffed doll for his daughter then lifted her up so she could ride on his shoulders as he weaved through the crowd.

"Aphrodite's temple is up that way." Gabrielle announced, startling both Emma and Regina out of their staring. They looked where the bard was pointing and saw that the road they were following ran up a hill ahead of them. At the top of the hill there were several temples.

"Which one is hers?" Emma asked.

"The first one on the right" Xena answered, without looking up from the weapons stall she was standing at.

Regina squinted a little and asked, "The one with the smoke coming out the door?"

Xena put down the dagger she was examining and turned. There was a thin, grey line of smoke rising from Aphrodite's temple. Gabrielle was the first to start moving. She led the way up the hill, walking quickly and trying to detect the cause of the smoke.

When they reached the entrance to the temple, they heard the sound of something shattering to the stone floor inside. They heard shouts of "Love is for losers!" and "Aphrodite sucks!" from inside. Once through the entryway they saw that the cause of the trouble was a group of half a dozen teenagers who had tipped ripped down most of the tapestries and even set fire to one of them. Now they were dancing through the main temple tipping over vases, bowls, and anything else breakable.

"Hey!" Xena shouted to get the vandals' attention. "What do you think you're doing?"

The teens stopped what they were doing and looked back at the women. One particularly brave one yelled back, "Whatever we want, old lady." The others cheered and laughed in support.

"Wrong answer," Xena growled as she drew her sword and Gabrielle her sais. Regina produced a fireball in her hand and Emma grabbed a board that had come loose from some scaffolding.

"Leave." Xena ordered. "Now. Before one of you gets hurt."

The group only seemed slightly intimidated by three women with weapons, but one look at the fireball floating in Regina's hand sent them running out a side door of the temple.

Regina quickly snuffed out the fireball as the other two put their weapons away and Emma dropped the board to the floor. Gabrielle rushed forward, looking worriedly for the god they had come to see.

"Aphrodite? Aphrodite!"

"Gabby?" A voice called front the back of the temple where the vandals hadn't gotten around to ransacking. Someone peeked out from behind a column. "Is that you?"

"Yes, it's us." Xena called back.

Aphrodite came out from behind the column. She was wearing large priestess robes with the hood up covering most of her head and face. She pushed back the hood and hugged Gabrielle then smiled with relief at Xena.

"Thank goodness you're here. I don't know what would have happened if they'd found me."

"Why didn't you make yourself invisible?" Gabrielle asked with concern.

Aphrodite looked like she might cry. "I tried but it didn't work. So I grabbed these robes and hid."

"They couldn't have hurt you." Gabrielle tried to comfort the god. "Whatever powers you may lose, Aphrodite, you're still immortal."

"I know that," Aphrodite replied as she pulled of the robes to reveal the bright pink bikini she was wearing underneath. "But can you blame me for being scared? Making myself invisible to mortals is the second power I've lost in as many days. I panicked!"

She dug around in a messy pile of debris until she found a sheer cover up, which she shook out then pulled on over top her bikini. Once she was comfortable, she finally noticed that Xena and Gabrielle hadn't come alone.

"Who are you?" She said to Regina and Emma.

Regina didn't answer. She was frozen, staring with her mouth hanging open at the blonde bombshell in front of her. So Emma was forced to reply instead. "I'm Emma and this is Regina." She glanced over at her girlfriend and nudged her in the side to break her out of her trance.

"Hello," Regina finally managed to sputter out.

"Oh, wow." Aphrodite jumped excitedly as she examined the women. "You two have amazing energy. I haven't seen compatibility like yours since these two over here." She nodded towards Xena and Gabrielle.

"How did you…" Emma started.

"Oh, honey. I'm the Goddess of Love, aren't I? Reading people is kind of my thing." She studied them for another moment, her head tilted sideways. "Hmmm. You were a little slow to figure it out at first, I see, but at least you got together on your own. They took for-ever. I think they'd probably still be dancing around each other if I hadn't stepped in."

Xena looked confused as she interrupted. "What are you talking about, Aphrodite? You didn't have anything to do with Gabrielle and I."

"Oh, please." Aphrodite laughed. "You think you were snowed into a cave for a week in the middle of July (the only cave with a hot spring for fifty miles I might add) by chance? You're lucky, Warrior Princess, but you're not that lucky." She winked at Gabrielle as the warrior princess blushed. "You're welcome, by the way."

Gabrielle laughed at her now flustered and sputtering wife. Regina, who had finally recovered from seeing a half naked Goddess of Love, came to her rescue. "As fascinating as it is learning about Xena and Gabrielle's love life, aren't we supposed to be helping you get back to full power?"

"Oh, right." Aphrodite became serious. "Let's get started then."

"What do you want us to do?" Xena asked.

"Not you." Aphrodite said, slipping into god mode. "Well, you can help. They're going to need a guide since they don't know this land."

"They? You mean me and Regina?" Emma asked warily.

"Exactly." The god nodded. "Now, which one?" She looked back and forth between the two very confused women. She seemed to read something in them, because a moment later she came to a decision and announced, "Oh, ok. Let's go with that then."

"Aphrodite," Xena asked nervously, "what exactly…"

Before Xena could finish, Aphrodite produced a ball of glittering light in her right hand, which she then threw at Regina.

Emma acted quickly. She lunged and pushed Regina out of the way of the magic. But in doing so, she put herself in it's way. It hit her back, and she landed in a heap next to Regina.

"Emma!" Regina yelled. She pulled the unconscious blonde into her lap.

Xena and Gabrielle had jumped forward as the ball of light hit Emma. Xena moved to pull her sword on Aphrodite, but the goddess put up her hands and yelled, "Wait, I can explain!"

Hearing the goddess' voice, Regina finally looked up from the blonde in her lap. She looked at Aphrodite like she wanted to tear her into a million pieces. "What did you do?"

"It's just a spell." Aphrodite said calmly. "She's fine. She'll wake up in a minute."

"Aphrodite," Gabrielle warned.

"I swear Gabby. She's fine." Aphrodite took another step backwards. "I mean, the spell was supposed to hit Regina, but it will work the same way on Emma. Look, she's waking up already."

Emma was finally stirring in Regina's arms. She put a hand to the side of her head that had hit the stone floor when she fell. When she opened her eyes and saw that she was laying in Regina's lap, she looked confused. "What happened?" She asked as she tried to sit up.

"That idiot over there hit you with some kind of spell and you were knocked out." Regina answered as she glared at Aphrodite. "Are you ok, Emma?"

The blonde nodded as she extracted herself from Regina's arms and got to her feet. "I'm fine. My brain feels a little fuzzy, like I'm missing something. But other than that I feel ok. Thanks for catching me, Madam Mayor." She looked around. "Uh, where are we?"

Gabrielle looked concerned. "We're in Athens."

Emma nodded. "Right. Athens. Why are we in Athens?"

"Ares promised to send us home if we helped Aphrodite." Regina responded slowly.

"Ares… Aphrodite…" Emma looked skeptical. "And I suppose those two are Xena and Gabrielle."

"Yes, actually. We are." Xena answered.

"We accidentally ended up in their world." Regina offered. "You don't remember?"

"Like I said, everything is a little… fuzzy." Emma paused. "Wait, did you call me Emma a minute ago?"

Regina suddenly looked terrified. "Why wouldn't I?"

Emma raised her eyebrow. "Oh come on. When was the last time you called me something other than Ms. Swan or Sheriff? And now suddenly I'm 'Emma'? I'm not complaining, it's just a surprise."

"Emma," Regina asked slowly, "what is the last thing you remember?"

Emma thought for a moment. "I don't know. Escaping from your mom and Jumping into a portal with Mary Margaret, I guess."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What did Aphrodite do? Any guesses? You'll find out next week!
> 
> As always, any mistakes in grammar, spelling, continuity (within the fic) are my own. These characters don't belong to me. I just borrow them and play with them as if they do ;)
> 
> If you're still reading, thank you. And I hope you continue to enjoy my silly little story. It's fun to write, and I'll continue to do so even if no one continues reading it.


	5. Chapter 5

_"Emma," Regina asked slowly, "what is the last thing you remember?"_

_Emma thought for a moment. "I don't know. Escaping from your mom and Jumping into a portal with Mary Margaret, I guess."_

 

"Is that how we ended up here? Did the compass not work?No, wait. That can't be right. If the compass didn't work then Mary Margaret would be here instead of you, Regina-" Emma stopped rambling when she looked over at the brunette.

Regina was looking at Emma in shock. "The portal back from the Enchanted Forest? That is the last thing you remember? But that was months ago! You… you don't remember getting back? You don't remember anything… after?"

Emma was starting to look concerned. "Months? That can't be right. I would remember if that was months ago."

Regina suddenly turned and stormed towards Aphrodite. The goddess moved back until Regina had her backed into a wall. "Why doesn't she remember?"

Aphrodite eyed Emma, who remained standing with Gabrielle a few yards away. The bard was trying to get Emma to sit down. Aphrodite responded quietly so only Regina (and Xena, who had followed them) could hear her. "The spell erased her memory of your relationship."

Regina conjured a fireball in her hand. "Undo it. Change her back. Now!"

Aphrodite put her hands up in surrender. "I can't. That was the last of my reserves. I can't reverse it. Only you can return her memory."

"What do you mean?"

"It was a true love spell." Aphrodite said. "It erases all memories a person has of falling for and being with their true love. And that person's true love has to go on the quest to get the memories back."

Regina faltered and the fireball fell out of her hand, snuffing itself out on the floor.

"And you couldn't have explained all this before you threw a ball of unknown magic at Regina?" Xena asked.

Aphrodite just shrugged as if to say 'I'm a god'.

"Um, hello." Emma interrupted, finally walking over with Gabrielle to join the whispering huddle. "Somebody want to fill in the lady with the missing memories? What happened? I mean, let's just say I believe everything you've told me so far, Regina. You and I jumped worlds. Xena and Gabrielle are real people. So are the Greek gods. And we're in their world. That still doesn't explain why I don't remember getting here."

"You said you'd help me get my powers back." Aphrodite said. "The fastest way to get me a big enough power boost is for someone to go on a quest. A memory loss spell takes the least amount of magic, so that's what I did. Boom. Instant quest."

"A quest?" Emma said. "Like King Arthur?"

"Something like that." Regina answered warily. "And now Aphrodite here is going to tell us what we have to do on this quest. Aren't you?"

Aphrodite looked up from her nails, which she had started studying with great interest. "Oh, Right. To reverse the memory loss you have to… you have to… oh what was it?"

"Sometime today, Aphrodite." Xena interrupted.

"Alight already. Just give me a second. Oh, now I remember! There's a herb that grows at the foot of Mount Olympus. It's called Anthos. You need to make a tea from that herb. When Emma drinks it, her memory should come back."

Regina looked unconvinced. "Should come back?"

"Will. It will come back."

"Well," Emma said, "If I'm missing memories, I want them back. So I say we go get this Anthos. Xena, Gabrielle, do you know how to get to Mount Olympus?"

Xena nodded. "Yes. It's about a 3 day ride if we move quickly. I'll talk to someone at the stables tonight and get us some horses. We can get rooms here in Athens for the night and start first thing tomorrow morning."

"Sounds like a plan." Emma said.

"What about her?" Regina waved angrily towards Aphrodite.

"Aphrodite should come with us." Gabrielle offered. "She knows what this herb looks like, and I'd rather not leave her here in case those vandals come back. Aphrodite, do you want to stay here for the night or get a room at the inn?"

"I'll stay here, Gabby." The god answered. "I need to talk to the priestess and arrange for some guards. This is the second of my temples to be vandalized this week."

Xena nodded in agreement. "You can meet us at the stables in the morning then."

Aphrodite gave Xena a salute. "Whatever you say, warrior babe."

Xena just rolled her eyes at the god and led the other 3 women out of the temple.

 

* * *

 

 

Xena took her horse to the stables and the others headed to an inn to get rooms for the night. When Xena returned they went to a tavern to get dinner. It was an awkward meal. Regina hadn't said a word since they left the temple and even though Emma didn't remember their relationship, she still seemed affected by the silence. Gabrielle tried a few times to make small talk, but when her attempts fell flat she gave up. After dinner they went back to their rooms.

The inn only had two rooms free so Emma and Regina had to share one. After they entered, Regina stood awkwardly near the door while Emma walked over to examine the bed. It had a sturdy wood frame, and the blankets looked a little threadbare, but the mattress was soft. "It looks comfortable enough. Better than some places I've slept. Which side do you want?"

When Regina didn't reply, Emma sighed. "Look, I know this is awkward. And I'm sure it's awful being stuck in this place with me of all people. But I'll make you a deal. We make the best of a bad situation now, and when we get back to Storybrooke I'll stay out of your hair for a whole week."

"That's not..."

"Ok, fine. I'll be lucky to last 5 days. But I'll try, Regina. I really will."

Regina realized that right before they had to share a bed for the night wasn't the best time to drop the bomb that she didn't hate Emma, she actually loved her, and that the time that Emma couldn't remember was almost the exact amount of time they'd been together. So instead, she rolled her eyes and shook her head. "Alright. You have a deal."

"Awesome. So…" Emma waved her hand at the bed.

"You will sleep closest to the door." Regina answered Emma's earlier question.

Emma risked a smirk. "Want me to protect you from any intruders, your majesty?"

Regina arched an eyebrow. "Well, you are the savior, dear. And the Sheriff as well. Doesn't that make you my bodyguard?"

Emma laughed, not knowing Regina had just told her one of her own jokes. "Who am I to argue with that?"

Emma looked down at her clothes. After wearing the same thing for two days out on the road, even her jeans were starting to look worn and grimy. "I don’t suppose we remembered to pack a change of clothes on this adventure? Or pajamas?"

Before Regina could answer, there was a knock at the door. Regina opened it and found Xena standing outside holding a bag. She held it out to Regina. "I almost forgot. I stopped on my way back from the stables and got you each a few pairs of pants and a few shirts. Your clothes are a bit conspicuous. These will help you blend in a little better on our journey."

"You have perfect timing, Xena." Emma said from across the room.

"Are you all set in here? Need anything else?"

"No, we have everything we need." Regina answered as she took the bag. "Thank you."

Xena nodded. "I guess I'll see you two in the morning then. Sleep well."

Regina closed the door and turned to find Emma directly behind her. Luckily Emma didn't notice the pained look on her face and instead went straight for the bag. She pulled out several long tunics before deciding on one to wear as a night shirt. Regina did the same and they both looked awkwardly at each other for a moment before turning their backs to each other to change. They both climbed into the bed, each careful to keep to her own side. After getting comfortable, Emma blew out the candle sitting on the bedside table then muttered, "Well, goodnight."

Regina waited until Emma's breathing evened out to whisper her response.

"Goodnight, Emma."

 

* * *

 

 

Down the hall Xena entered her room to find Gabrielle sitting at the table writing. The bard looked up as she entered.

"So? What do you think? How are they doing?"

"Emma seems to be handling everything ok. Besides the fact that she's missing almost half a year's worth of memories, of course." Xena answered, as she began to take off her armor. "Regina is having a harder time. I don't think she knows how to handle an Emma who doesn't remember their entire relationship. But she'll figure out a way to manage until we can get to Mount Olympus. It's not that long a ride. Less than three days if we ride fast."

"Do you think we should talk to Aphrodite? Tell her to go easy on the true love/soul mate stuff?" Gabrielle asked.

"You can mention it to her if you want." Xena replied. "I don't know how much Regina wants to tell Emma. But it could be a good thing, if Aphrodite can be subtle about it." She rolled her eyes, knowing that subtlety was not a trait gods were known for.

Gabrielle blew out the candle that was sitting on the table and started putting away her things. "I feel for them. It must be awful."

"It is." Xena confirmed sadly as she climbed into bed. "Remembering the person you love when they don't know you, or not remembering them at all. It's awful either way." Xena's voice became distant, then she went silent as she was pulled back into her memories. Images flashed before her eyes. Gabrielle as a slave in the alternate timeline the Fates had shown her. Gabrielle in the Temple of Mnemosyne considering giving up her memories. Beowulf trying to get to her remember her own name after she'd put on the Rheingold ring.

When Gabrielle turned and saw Xena staring blankly at the ceiling, she abandoned the rest of her writing tools out on the table and made her way to the bed. She slipped under the covers and snuggled into Xena's side. She didn't say anything, but she didn't need to. As soon as Xena felt her wife at her side she snapped out of her memory induced haze. She smiled and kissed the blonde's head before turning to blow out the candle.

"Goodnight, Gabrielle. I love you."

"I love you too, Xena."

 

* * *

 

 

The next morning they all got up early and, after a quick breakfast, headed for the stables. They found Aphrodite and five horses waiting for them. The goddess was dressed less like an immortal and more like an ordinary traveler, but was still wearing fancier clothing that the rest of them combined. Regina managed not to glare at her, but stubbornly refused to respond when Aphrodite wished her a good morning.

They rode slowly towards the gates of the city. The streets were mostly empty yet, so they could ride side by side in pairs with Aphrodite taking up the rear. Regina watched stall keepers setting up for the day. One older man  looked up and smiled at them as they passed and Regina nodded in acknowledgement.

Regina turned to check on Emma and saw that she was riding comfortably, but wearing a very confused expression. The blonde was glaring at the back of her horse's head as if the animal knew something she wanted to know. Regina waited, but when Emma continued to look puzzled she guided her horse over to walk a little closer to Emma's and asked, "What's wrong, Emma?"

Emma looked over at her. "I know how to ride a horse."

Regina looked back at her blankly. "Yes, you do. Quite well. What's wrong with that?"

"I don't know how I know how to ride a horse."

Suddenly realizing what the problem was, Regina smiled in understanding. "You learned after returning from the Enchanted Forrest. In the time that spell wiped from your memory. That's why you don't remember learning."

"Oh." Emma looked only slightly less worried. "I guess that was probably part of my princess lessons with David or Snow, right? Snow was talking about teaching me to be royal the whole time we were in the Enchanted Forest."

Regina tried not to laugh. "Those two? Teach you to ride? Never. Your father is an adequate rider I suppose, but certainly not good enough to teach others. And your mother hasn't cared for horses much since she… since an incident in her childhood. She rides only when necessary."

Emma ignored the jab at David. "So who then?"

"Me, of course."

Emma almost pulled her horse to a complete stop in surprise. "You?!"

"I taught both you and Henry." Regina said over her shoulder as she continued to ride forward.

Emma hastily got her horse moving again and caught up to Regina as they exited the city and got out onto the main road. Before Emma could ask for more explanation, Gabrielle turned and called from ahead of them. "Ready to get moving?"

"Let's go." Regina responded.

Xena and Gabrielle sped up their horses and led the way north. Aphrodite was right behind them. Regina followed and Emma brought up the rear, her mind filled with questions.

 

* * *

 

 

They rode hard all day, stopping only to eat a quick lunch then getting moving again. The road took them over and around the hilly countryside. They passed small villages and farms full of people. Every once in a while they also took some shortcuts across wild country. They rode by fields filled with wildflowers of soft lavender, brilliant red, and a blue that almost matched the sky. Once, when it began to rain, they turned off the road into a forest so that they could keep riding without getting too wet. The trees were so thick that after the rain stopped, the sunlight broke through the damp canopy in brilliant golden shafts of light amidst the dark greens and browns. Just after lunch they reached the water and turned to follow it north and west. The afternoon grew warm, but a cool, salty breeze off the water kept them from getting too hot.

Regina was grateful for the pace they set. She wanted to get to Mount Olympus and get Emma's memories back as soon as possible. She knew Emma was going to start asking questions about the time she was missing and she didn't know how much she should tell her. A part of her wanted to be honest with the woman she loved, but she also knew how quick Emma could be to run from things that scared her. This Emma didn't remember even getting along with Regina. Learning that they were in a romantic relationship might send her running for the hills.

When they finally stopped for the night and got down from their horses, they were all tired and sore. Xena, and Gabrielle went to sleep immediately after dinner. Aphrodite fussed with her bed roll for a little longer, but was soon sound asleep too. Unfortunately for Regina, Emma's curiosity overpowered her exhaustion. Once they'd lain down on their two sleeping bags (Regina had conjured a second when no one was looking), she turned to face Regina.

"So, these horse riding lessons…"

Regina sighed. "What about them?"

"How come Snow and Charming didn't throw a fit about me or Henry learning from their former arch enemy?"

Regina noticed Emma's use of the word 'former'and she smiled. "Well, Henry was already back staying with me. You made sure of that as soon as you got back from the Enchanted Forest. So my teaching him to ride wasn't really a problem."

"Wait, what?" Emma interrupted. "Where had he been staying while we were gone?"

"With your father."

Emma opened her mouth to respond, but Regina didn't give her the chance.

"You have to remember, Emma. The curse had just broken and everyone remembered who I was and how… what I'd done. And Henry wasn't happy with me either at the time. So both David and I decided it was best if Henry stayed with him at Mary Margaret's apartment for a while. Anyway, almost as soon as you got back you sent Henry directly back home. I still don't know what you said to him, but whatever it was did the trick. He even hugged me when he came in the door." Regina sniffed back a tear. "It was still tense for the first few days, but we managed. I didn't keep Henry from spending time with you or his grandparents. His grades stayed up at school. Eventually people had to concede I wasn't going to hurt Henry and that I really was trying to change. Even your parents."

Emma nodded. "So when you started teaching me to ride too, they were cool?"

Regina smirked. "Oh, don't get me wrong, their opinions of me didn't change overnight. They weren't exactly happy about you spending time with me at first. But they didn't have much choice. Snow's first attempt at 'princess lessons' went so badly that you refused to speak to her for nearly a week afterwards. So when Henry asked me to teach him to ride and I invited you along, I think they were so happy that you were learning something from the old world that they were willing to look past my… past."

Emma nodded. "What happened with Snow? What did she try to teach me?"

"That was a delightfully entertaining incident." Regina chuckled, "Along with teaching you diplomacy and royal protocol, she tried improving your wardrobe to make you dress more royal. I think she was still getting the hang of how to be a mother with a daughter was the same age as her. And you were getting the hang of having parents for the first time. Neither one of you were sure how much of a mother she should be. She managed to get you to wear slacks and blouses for a few days but when you caught her boxing up your leather jackets…"

"Things went bad." Emma finished for her.

Regina nodded. "Like I said, you didn't talk to her for days." She left out the fact that Emma had slept at Regina's for those days, but she couldn't resist smiling as she thought back to those nights. That had been the very beginning of their relationship. They'd eaten dinner as a family with Henry every night and the two of them bonded over cider later in the evenings. The first night, they had gossiped over Snow's many faults. But eventually their conversations turned to other things. By the middle of the week Regina had pulled out old pictures and movies of Henry growing up. At the end of the week, Emma had asked Regina out on their first real date.

A cough brought Regina back to the present. "Sorry. Where was I? Oh, right. Eventually Snow apologized and you forgave her. Though you refused to let her give you any more lessons in being royalty. You said since we were all in Storybrooke that you didn't need to know those things. And the two of you started to work out a way to be mother and daughter and friends that worked for both of you. A week later you began joining Henry and I at the stables on the weekends."

When Emma yawned, Regina decided to take the chance to end the conversation before it got into dangerous territory. "It's late, Emma. And we're both tired. Let's get some sleep."

"Ok" Emma said through a second yawn. "Thanks, Regina. For telling me. Even if I can't remember, it helps at least knowing a little bit of what happened in the time I'm missing."

Regina only nodded, then turned to face away from the blonde.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter contains character injury. Nothing life threatening, but serious enough. If you'd rather not read that bit, then skip the second bit (after the break).

Regina woke up to the smell of something cooking. She sat up and looked around. Xena was nowhere to be seen. Gabrielle was showing Emma how to cook fish over a campfire while Aphrodite watched with disinterest. Regina watched as Emma tried, and failed, to flip a fish with the spatula Gabrielle had handed her. Cooking was not a skill Emma possessed. She'd been asking Regina to teach her for weeks, but magic lessons had taken precedence. Watching the woman now, Regina made a mental note to get to it faster.

Emma glanced up and saw Regina watching her. "Good morning, your majesty."

"Good morning." Regina responded. "You're up early."

Emma shrugged "The sun woke me up."

"Ah." Regina nodded in understanding before changing the subject. "Are you cooking? Are you sure that's a good idea? The last time you tried to make breakfast you ended up with charcoal bricks instead of pancakes."

Emma squinted at the brunette. Regina had always liked to tease her about her cooking abilities. But she thought that was just because she always ate at the diner. Since when did Regina know specific examples of how bad a cook she was? Had Henry been tattling on her?

"Don't worry." She finally managed. "Gabrielle is keeping an eye on me. She won't let me burn anything."

Emma went back to cooking, but a minute or two later she flipped the fish too high and got splattered with some of the water from the frying pan. It wasn't hot enough to burn, but Regina heard her groan and say, "I'm going to smell like fish for days."

The statement made Regina flash back to the time Emma had fallen into the harbor. They had been walking together on the pier when a thief snatched Archie's wallet ahead of them. Emma had chased the man down to the harbor and out onto a dock. She caught him, but when she tackled him they had both tumbled off the dock and into the water. Regina couldn't stop herself from laughing as she remembered watching Emma walk out of the water, holding onto the crook with one hand and pulling seaweed out of her hair with the other. The blonde had said the same thing then.

Emma noticed Regina's shoulders shaking and scowled at her.

"It's not funny, Regina. I am. I'm going to smell like fish."

"I know you are." Regina gasped, trying to control her laughter. "But it's not as if you didn't already need a bath. You haven't taken a shower in almost four days."

"And you have?" Emma countered.

Regina's laughter suddenly stopped. She tried to come up with a response, but Emma was right. She was saved from having to admit this by a voice from the trees.

"You both smell equally bad." Xena declared as she entered the camp with damp hair. "There's a river just through the trees that way." She pointed the way she'd come from then tossed Regina a bar of soap. "Regina, you go wash up while Emma finishes helping Gabrielle with breakfast. Then she can have her turn."

Regina grabbed a change of clothes and walked through the trees. When she was gone, Aphrodite sighed in what sounded like relief.

"What?" Emma asked the god.

"Are you two going to bicker like an old married couple the whole way to Mount Olympus? Don't get me wrong, I enjoy a good flirty exchange as much as the next Goddess of Love. But even I am going to get sick of you two dancing around each other if I have to listen to two more days of it."

"Regina and I do not 'bicker like an old married couple.'" Emma sputtered. "And we definitely don't flirt."

"Oh, please. Just because you lost your-"

"That's enough, Aphrodite." Gabrielle interrupted, giving the woman a look.

Aphrodite threw up her hands. "Fine, fine. I'm done."

"Speaking of done," Xena asked, "how's that fish coming?"

"It's ready." Gabrielle announced.

Emma looked suspiciously back and forth between the three woman as she ate. They had all been acting strange around her since the temple. Like they were hiding something from her. Suddenly, as she looked at Aphrodite again, a thought hit her. Her eyes went wide and she nearly choked on the bite of fish she was chewing. But before she could voice her sudden realization, Regina came walking back through the trees.

Emma turned and stared, her eyes still wide. Regina was wearing tan trousers and a dark, royal blue tunic. Her hair was wet, and it fell into her eyes as she leaned down to put her dirty clothes into their bag. She flipped her head to get it out of her eyes as she straightened. Emma stared like she was seeing Regina for the first time. Her thoughts running so fast that she didn't react when Regina walked up and stopped in front of her.

"Here you go, Emma." Regina held out the soap to the gaping blonde. "Don't take too long. We need to get on the road."

When Emma didn't move to take it, Regina finally noticed the look on her face. "Emma? What's wrong? You look like you just saw a ghost."

Emma squeaked out, "nothing" half an octave higher than her normal speaking voice. Emma took a breath and tried again, "Nothing. I'm fine. Thanks. I'll be back in a bit." She snatched the soap from Regina's hand and jumped from her seat. She made it halfway to the trees before she had to double back for the pile of clean clothes she'd gotten out. Then she practically ran towards the river.

Regina watched her go with concern, then turned to the group. She took a plate from Gabrielle and asked, "What was that about?"

Gabrielle answered. "Aphrodite was teasing Emma after you left. I think it made her a little uncomfortable."

"One day. You couldn't even leave it alone one day? What did you say?" Regina asked Aphrodite.

"It was nothing." The goddess insisted. "I just observed that your bickering seems a lot like flirting."

"Of course it does. It always was. Even before we-" Regina looked towards the trees where Emma had gone, wondering if she should go after her. "I was hoping we could make it to Mount Olympus without telling her the truth about her missing memories."

"That's going to be difficult." Xena said. "It's a short journey, but we are traveling with the literal Goddess of Love. Emma might figure it out on her own, if she hasn't already. And when she does, you'll have to tell her something."

"Yes, well. I will deal with that if and when it happens." Regina said, before giving Aphrodite a pointed look. "Until then, keep the commentary and speculation to a minimum. You've caused enough trouble already."

Aphrodite shrugged. "Whatever."

They ate the rest of the meal in silence. When Emma came back, dressed in similar trousers and a light green tunic, she avoided Regina's gaze. Instead she hastily suggested they get on the road. So they packed up their things and got on their horses again.

 

* * *

 

 

Xena kept them moving at the same pace as the previous day. They sped north as fast as their horses would take them. The coast had arced away from them before they stopped the previous evening, so their views were again limited to trees, grass, and the occasional small village. By the middle of the afternoon, they were all tired again. So it was a relief when Xena signaled for them to slow, then stop along a densely wooded part of the road. Gabrielle moved her horse up next to Xena's and looked out ahead of them as she asked, "What is it, Xena?"

Xena didn't turn to look at her. She kept her eyes forward, scanning for something. "Trouble."

"How many?"

Xena examined the dense trees on either side of the road ahead. "Ten. Maybe a dozen. Just around the next bend."

"What's going on?" Asked Regina as she, Emma, and Aphrodite rode up.

"There is a group of thieves up ahead waiting to ambush unsuspecting travelers." Gabrielle explained.

"Can't we just ride past them really fast?" Emma suggested.

"We could try." Xena replied. "But they could have bows and the road is narrow here. They would have a very good chance of injuring one of us or the horses, even if they don't have great aim. And what about the next person who comes down this road? They would still be a target. No, we'll have to scare them off. How are you with a sword, Emma?"

Emma shrugged. "Not bad. Mary Margaret was teaching me back in the Enchanted Forest."

"Good. Everyone off your horses."

Gabrielle seemed to know what Xena was planning because she quickly tied the horses together and gave the reigns to Aphrodite. Xena had grabbed a stick from the side of the road and was drawing in the dirt. "They'll probably come out in front of us and demand our money and jewelry. The usual deal. Let me do the talking. I doubt we can scare them off without a fight, but I've got a trick or two I can try before we resort to that. Gabrielle, you take the left. I'll take the right. Regina and Emma, stay behind us and take on the ones who get around us. I'll disarm the first one I see with a sword and toss it to you, Emma. Regina, do you need a weapon?"

Regina flexed her fingers in anticipation. "No. My magic will be more than enough."

"What about me?" Aphrodite asked.

"You stay here." The warrior explained. "I don't want the horses getting hurt, so I need you to keep them out of sight and safe."

Aphrodite nodded and patted the neck of her horse. She pulled the animals a few paces into the trees as the others began walking down the road, pretending they had no idea what was waiting ahead of them.

The thieves didn't walk out casually and demand their goods like they were expecting. They jumped out of the trees from every direction and surrounded the women, attacking almost before they had a chance to react. Most were armed with swords, but two hung back in the tree line with crossbows.

Xena and Gabrielle pulled their weapons and quickly began fighting the swordsmen. Emma lifted her fists as the first man came at her, but Regina used her powers to send him flying into a tree to give Xena time to toss Emma a sword. Emma caught the weapon and cut down the next man who ran at her.

Regina turned and threw a fireball at the man aiming his crossbow at Gabrielle. His clothing went up in flames and he ran into the forest with a screech. Before she could look for the other bowman, she felt a sharp pain in her left calf and her leg gave out from under her. Regina grimaced at the arrow sticking out of her leg before positioning herself on the ground so she could defend herself if any more attackers decided to target her.

Emma yelled as she saw Regina fall. Gabrielle, who had also seen her go down, quickly finished off the man she was fighting and sent one of her sais flying into the chest of the second crossbowman before he could reload. When Xena glanced over her shoulder and saw Regina on the ground, she let out her war cry and threw her chakram. It flew back and forth between the trees, taking out four attackers before returning to hand. The few men who were still standing at this point realized they were not going to win and they began to break and run for their lives.

When the fight was over, Emma rushed to Regina's side while Gabrielle jogged back to get Aphrodite and their horses.

"Regina!" Emma practically yelled as she knelt down beside the brunette. "Oh my god, are you ok?"

"I'll live." Regina replied shortly. The adrenaline from the fight was wearing off fast and the pain from the arrow was getting worse by the second. She tried to sit up straighter, but every small movement sent a jolt of pain up her leg.

Once Xena had finished dragging the dead men off the road, she came over and examined the arrow sticking out of Regina's leg. The crossbow had sent it nearly all the way through her leg. Only a few inches of the shaft had not made it through.

"You're lucky." Xena said as she poked the area around the wound.

Regina gasped in pain with every poke and hissed back, "I got shot. How is that lucky?"

"It's lucky because it didn't hit the bone or anything else significant. Also, the tip wasn't poisoned. So all I have to do is get the arrow out and wrap the wound. You'll have a serious limp while it heals, but as long as you keep it clear of infection you should be good as new in a few weeks."

Regina just grunted in response.

Gabrielle and Aphrodite appeared around the bend of the road and Xena went to pull some cloth from one of their packs to use as a bandage, and a skin of water. She knelt beside Regina again and ripped open her pant leg to examine the arrow from both sides again.

"I'm going to break off the end here." Xena pointed. "And then pull it through the other side. I'll do it as quickly as possible, but it's still going to hurt. Are you ready?"

Regina grabbed hold of Emma's arm and nodded. She gritted her teeth as Xena broke off the end of the arrow, gripping Emma's bicep so hard it would definitely leave a bruise. Xena pulled the rest of the arrow out in one swift movement and poured some water over Regina's leg to wash away the blood and dirt. She then wrapped the bandage snugly around the wound.

"There. All done." Xena announced as she examined her handiwork. "Do you think you can stand?"

Regina nodded again and Emma helped her to her feet. She tried putting a little weight on her injured leg, but it gave out and she was suddenly falling sideways. Emma caught her and put her arm around her waist so Regina didn't have to put all of her weight on her good leg.

"Thank you" Regina smiled gratefully at the blonde.

"Hey, it's my job, remember? Besides, what kind of a Savior would I be if I let the mother of my son get all scraped up." Emma tried to joke, but her face was still full of concern as she thought of Henry. "He is going to be furious at me for letting you get shot."

Regina squeezed Emma's hand. "You didn't let me get shot, Emma. The only person to blame is the one who pulled the trigger."

"She's right." Xena agreed. "Besides, we don't have time to debate blame."

"So what now?" Regina asked the group. "I don't think I'll be able to ride as fast as we were going before."

"We'll just have to move slower." Gabrielle replied. "I can give you something to help with the pain, but it will make you tired. If you think you can manage until we stop for the evening…"

"That's fine." Regina replied. "It hurts less now that it's wrapped. I'll manage until we stop. Emma, help me back onto my horse."

Emma held onto Regina as the woman slipped her good foot into a stirrup then helped her swing her injured leg over the horse. By the time Regina was settled atop the horse, she was grimacing and panting from the pain. But when Emma looked concerned, Regina took a deep breath and said, "Are we going? Or are we just going to stand around here all day?"

 

They were soon all back on their horses and headed down the road again, though at a significantly slower pace than before. They kept their horses moving at not much more than a quick walk, which was all Regina could handle without yelping every time her horse took a step.

She tried to distract herself by watching the scenery as they rode. She could see hills distance up ahead that turned into hazy mountains that were so far away she could barely make them out. When her eyes got tired from squinting to make out the distant peaks, she turned her attention to the trees around her. The forest they had been attacked in was thinning now. She could see further and further into the undergrowth. Once, she thought she saw a deer a few yards into the trees. But when she looked again, it was gone. Eventually the pain in her leg began to overpower her interest in the things around her and she could do nothing but stare ahead and keep her horse moving.

They managed to travel 10 miles from where they'd been attacked before Emma called for them to stop. Xena looked back at Emma, who tilted her head at Regina. The woman's eyes were slightly out of focus and she was only half paying attention to guiding her horse.

"This seems like a good place to make camp for the night." Xena called to the others, trying to be subtle.

Regina snapped out of her haze. "Huh? But there's still plenty of daylight left. We could go a couple more miles."

"I vote for stopping," Aphrodite chimed in. "I'm exhausted."

Gabrielle nodded. "I think there is a waterfall and a pool not far from here. Let's stop here and get some rest."

Regina tried to roll her eyes. "You are all being extremely transparent. But fine, let's stop."

Regina stayed on her horse as they walked off the road looking for a place to make camp. Once they'd found a nice, secluded spot, Emma unrolled their sleeping bags side by side next to where Xena was starting a fire then helped Regina down from the horse. Gabrielle pulled out some herbs and put them in a pot with some water over the fire. After a few minutes, Gabrielle pulled the tea from the fire and poured it into a cup, which she then handed to Regina.

"Drink this. It will help with the pain."

As Regina sipped the tea, Gabrielle turned to the others and started giving out assignments. "Emma, you stay here with Regina. Aphrodite and I will go gather more firewood for the night while Xena hunts us something for dinner."

Emma saluted the bard and plopped down onto her own sleeping bag, next to Regina's, in front of the fire.

"Any special requests?" Xena asked as she pulled out a bow and some arrows.

"Anything but fish," Aphrodite called as she followed Gabrielle into the trees.

"Rabbit it is," Xena called back and walked in the opposite direction.

Emma and Regina sat in silence for a few minutes. Emma watched the fire as Regina finished her tea then set the cup aside and leaned back against a rolled up blanket with her eyes closed. As the herbs started working and the pain began to recede Regina started feeling like herself again.

It was the first real quiet moment they'd had all day. The fire cracked, and a few birds chirped in the trees, but it was otherwise silent. The silence gave Emma time to think and she began to fidget as she remembered Aphrodite's teasing from that morning.

"You're thinking too loud." Regina muttered without opening her eyes.

"Sorry." Emma apologized. "I'll try to think quieter."

Regina hummed, starting to doze off sitting up. Emma watched her lean further and further over until she was curled up with her head on her pillow. The blonde reached over and pulled the blanket out from behind Regina. She opened it up and spread it over the now completely asleep brunette. Then she leaned back against her own pillow to wait for the others to get back. 


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know I've only been posting a new chapter once a week, but I like this one too much to keep it to myself any longer. I hope you all enjoy it. This one was a lot of fun to write.

The next morning, Regina woke groggy and stiff. Her leg hurt again, though not as badly as it had the previous day. It was more of a dull throbbing. She made a mental note to ask Gabrielle for more of that tea, but not until later. It had completely knocked her out the night before and she wanted to be fully awake so they could ride as far as possible today.

She sat up and looked around. At first she thought the camp was empty. Everyone's bedrolls were empty and no one was sitting on the log near the fire. Then she spotted a flash of blonde from the corner of her eye. She turned and saw Emma walking into the camp with an armful of logs.

"Good morning." The blonde said cheerfully. "How did you sleep?"

"Like a rock." Regina responded. "Where is everyone?"

Emma set down the wood she was carrying and pointed. "They went to check out that waterfall Gabrielle mentioned yesterday."

Regina's stomach rumbled, reminding her that she'd slept through dinner the night before.

"Oh," Emma jumped up and went over to the other side of the fire. "you must be hungry. There's some rabbit left. And bread and cheese. No fruits or veggies, but you can't have everything, right?." She came back around the fire holding a plate full of food.

"Thank you." Regina said as she dug into the food.

Emma sat down on her own sleeping bag as Regina ate. When she was done, the brunette set the plate aside and tilted her head back with her eyes closed, enjoying the warmth of the sun. She could hear birds in the trees around them. And the fire crackling. And also the sound of Emma starting to fidget. It wasn't long before the silence was broken.

"Regina?"

"Yes?" Regina answered, keeping her eyes shut.

Emma turned to fully face her. "Can I ask you something?"

Regina peeked at the blonde through one half opened eye. When she saw the serious look on Emma's face she opened both eyes and sat up. "You can ask anything you like." She waved at her bandaged leg. "I can't escape. Not very fast anyway."

"I'm being serious, Regina. If I ask you a question, will you give me an honest answer?"

Regina closed her eyes and sighed, silently cursing Aphrodite in advance just in case. "Yes, I'll answer honestly."

"Good. Ok then. So, I know there's something you all haven't been telling me. I know it's something to do with what I'm missing. There's a reason I lost the memories I did. The amount of time I did. And since Aphrodite is involved… I may not have a college education, Regina, but I know a few basics about the Greek gods. So my question is… " Emma took a deep breath, opened her mouth, then closed it again. She seemed to struggle for a moment before trying again. "The memories I'm missing…"

When Emma didn't continue, Regina said, "The memories you're missing..."

"Are the memories I'm missing," Emma tried again, "of you?"

"How do you mean?" Regina stalled and turned her eyes to watch the fire.

"Were we… are we…" She trailed off again.

"…in a relationship." Regina finished for her.

"Yes. In a relationship. Are we in a relationship? A romantic relationship?" Emma asked with more confidence.

Regina was silent as she watched the flames of the fire. The silence stretched, and Emma started to think she might have made a mistake, but Regina finally whispered a barely audible "Yes. We're together."

It was the answer Emma had been expecting, but she was still a little surprised by it. "Oh. Wow."

When she didn't say any more, Regina turned to look at the blonde. "Are you ok?"

Emma thought for a minute before replying. "Yeah. I mean, it's a little weird. The not remembering bit, not the in a relationship bit. I've been attracted to you since we first met, so…"

"You've been attracted to me since we first met?" Regina asked, dumbstruck.

"Well, yeah." Emma answered. "Didn't you know?"

When Regina shook her head, Emma explained. "How could I not be. I mean, the woman who raised my son turns out to be a drop dead gorgeous woman who runs an entire town and also makes her own alcohol? You give an incredible first impression, Regina."

Regina stared at Emma in disbelief. "I threatened you the first time we met."

Emma shrugged. "Your kid disappeared, then came back with some strange woman he didn't even know claiming she was more his mother than you. You were entitled to get a little defensive." Emma laughed a little. "And besides. You did it subtly. That night at least. You didn't threaten to destroy me until, what, almost a whole 24 hours later? By that point I was already a goner."

Regina chuckled and shook her head. They both let the silence return as Emma really absorbed the information Regina had given her. Suddenly, she had a thought and turned to Regina looking concerned. She looked Regina right in the eye as she spoke. "Are you ok?"

Regina was taken aback by the question. "What do you mean?"

"These last few days must have been awful for you. You've had to spend all this time with me since the temple. I thought you were avoiding talking to me because you didn't like me. But it's because I don't remember, isn't it? Because I don't know you that way anymore. It must be painful just to look at me. I look like the same Emma, but I'm not. And here I've been asking you questions about my missing memories. I'm so sorry I put you through that."

"You're apologizing for not remembering?" Regina marveled, laughing out loud before muttering, "Emma Swan, you are an amazing woman. I could kiss you." She realized what she'd said immediately after the words left her mouth. She turned back to the fire embarrassed, hoping Emma somehow hadn't heard her. Emma turned as well and they both sat in silence for a few more minutes. Regina spent the time scolding herself. Emma, on the other hand, spent the time considering what Regina had said. Her forehead crinkled in thought as she stared at the fire.

"You could, you know." Emma finally offered casually. "If you want to." She threw in a shrug for good measure.

Regina was startled out of her thoughts. "I could what?"

"Kiss me."

Regina looked wary. "But you don't remember."

"Exactly. We kissed before, right? Back before I lost my memories?"

"Yes." Regina offered hesitantly.

Emma scooted a little closer to Regina with a mischievous smile. "But I don't remember. I don't remember ever kissing you, Regina Mills. And that sucks."

"It sucks?" Regina raised an eyebrow, finally catching on to Emma's game.

"Totally sucks. You should do something about it."

Regina smirked. "You think so, do you?"

Emma smirked back. "Yep. I do. I think you sh-"

Emma was cut off as Regina leaned over and pressed her lips to the blonde's. Emma froze in surprise. She hadn't actually expected her plan to work. But before she could recover from her surprise there was a burst of energy and they were thrown apart. Regina was tossed back onto her sleeping bag, letting out a hiss of pain as her injured leg was jarred. Emma was thrown farther and landed on her back on the grass a few feet away. The blonde was the first to sit up.

"What the heck hap-" Emma stopped short and her eyes went wide as she stared at Regina, who was slower to sit up. Her mind suddenly flooded with images, sights, smells, tastes. Every moment of the missing few months came rushing back. She put a hand to her forehead to steady the dizziness that overwhelmed her, but continued to stare at Regina.

Regina looked confused, but hopeful as she sat back up. "Was that what I think it-" She stopped short when she saw the look on Emma's face. "Emma? What's wrong?"

Emma suddenly snapped out of her daze and her face broke into a brilliant, teary smile. "Regina. I remember!"

Regina noticed the difference in Emma's voice immediately. "You remember?" She asked hopefully.

"I remember!" Emma hopped the distance between them and, carefully avoiding bumping Regina's leg, kissed Regina again. When Emma pulled back, she saw tears in Regina's eyes.

"You do remember."

"I do. You have very powerful kisses, Ms. Mills." Emma smiled and leaned in to kiss Regina a third time, but pulled back at the last moment. "Wait. We kissed and I got my memory back. Does that mean-"

Before Emma could finish asking her question, there was a yell from the trees. The screech came from the direction of the waterfall. Both women turned in time to see a flash on the other side of the fire. When the shower of glitter faded, they saw Aphrodite standing in the campsite smiling from ear to ear.

"Whoa, head rush!"

"Aphrodite?! Did you just-"

"That's right. I'm back, baby!" Aphrodite snapped her fingers and a shower of pink sparkles fell over the two women still tangled on the ground. Whatever was in the magic made Emma's heart flutter, and she had to clap her hand over her mouth until the urge to giggle faded.

Emma was still half in Regina's lap when Xena and Gabrielle came running into the camp. As they broke through the trees, Emma turned to sit next to Regina on the sleeping bag.

"What happened?" Xena asked, worried. "Aphrodite, how did you-" She stopped short when she saw Emma and Regina.

Aphrodite ignored Xena and looked to Regina, nearly bouncing with excitement. "Man, you two give off a ton of power. I haven't felt this juiced since before the Twilight. How did you do it? Start at the beginning and tell me everything!" She sat down on the log near the fire and looked at the two expectantly. Xena and Gabrielle came over and sat next to her. Emma and Regina stayed where they were on Regina's sleeping bag.

"You broke the spell?" Gabrielle asked. "Does that mean you have your memories back, Emma?"

The blonde smiled at the women standing around them. "I do. I remember everything."

"Stop distracting them, Gabby. "Aphrodite scolded the bard. "Of course Emma remembers again. Otherwise I wouldn't have gotten my powers back and I wouldn't have been able to teleport." Aphrodite turned back to Regina. "Now. Regina. How did you do it?"

Regina looked a little awkward as she responded. "I, uh, kissed her?"

"Aw," Aphrodite put her hand over her heart. "That's so romantic! I thought Anthos tea was the only thing that would break the spell. I'm glad I was wrong."

"Shouldn't you know how your own spells work, Aphrodite?" Xena asked with a tone that suggested she wasn't surprised at all.

Aphrodite shrugged. "I do. I've done that spell hundreds of times and a kiss never worked before."

"Maybe it's us." Emma offered.

"What do you mean?" Gabrielle asked.

"Oh, of course!" Regina said. "We're not from this world."

"Exactly." Emma nodded. "In the world we were both born in, spells can be broken with a kiss. Maybe that's why your spell worked differently on me."

Aphrodite nodded. "That would do it. From now on I'm going to tweak the spell to break with a kiss for everyone I cast it on. That's much better than drinking some boiled plant water." She made a face.

"I guess we don't need that 'boiled plant water' now." Regina said, smiling at Emma. "Though I must admit I'm still a little curious as to what this magic plant looks like."

"I can show you if you want. Hang on." Aphrodite waved her hand and magically conjured a sprig of the plant. She held it out for the others to see. It looked almost like the branch of a pine tree. The leaves were thin and long in the same way as the needles of a pine tree, but not as prickly. They were softer, more like real leaves than needles.

Xena and Gabrielle reacted first as they were sitting next to Aphrodite and could see the plant better. Xena shook her head and muttered "gods" before putting her head in her hands. Gabrielle squinted at the plant for half a second longer before she realized what it was and glanced at Regina, who'd had to lean forward to get a good look at the plant. Regina recognized it just as Gabrielle glanced at her, and the look on her face prompted a muttered "uh oh" from the bard. Emma didn't recognize the plant at all, so she only nodded with mild curiosity. She didn't notice anything was amiss until Regina squeezed her hand tightly.

"Emma," Regina spoke through her teeth without taking her eyes off of the plant in Aphrodite's hand, "be a dear and help me up. I need to beat some sense into that idiot who calls herself a god." She opened and closed her hand a few times, flexing her fingers as if she was itching to conjure a fireball.

"What? Why?" She finally looked around at the other women's faces and realized something was wrong.

Aphrodite was the only one who seemed as confused as she was. The god's eyes widened at Regina's threat and she looked to Gabrielle in her confusion. "What's going on? What did I do?"

Regina glared at Aphrodite in silence a moment longer before growling out, "Rosemary. That's rosemary."

"What is she talking about?" Aphrodite asked, eyeing Regina warily. "What's rosemary?"

"Rosemary." Emma ignored the goddess. "As in the same rosemary you put in your roast chicken?"

Regina managed a nod and then slowly raised her hand and pointed. "That… that woman sent us on a quest to get a plant that we probably passed growing wild in a dozen fields since we arrived here."

Emma couldn't help herself. She started laughing. Her shoulders shook as she tried to laugh silently, but she failed miserably. A single snort escaped, and then snowballed into loud, uncontrollable laughter.

"It's not funny, Emma! We've been running around the Greek countryside for days!"

"I know." Emma gasped as tears rolled down her face. "It's just… rosemary.... You can buy it at the grocery store!"

Regina made an annoyed noise. "Oh for gods sake, Emma. I got shot through the leg with a crossbow!"

"I'm sorry." Emma finally caught her breath. She looked at Regina apologetically. "I love you. And I hate that you got hurt. And I completely understand why you're angry. I do. I really do. But come on, Regina. You have to admit it is just a little bit funny." When she got no response, she bumped Regina with her shoulder. "Just a teeny tiny bit?"

Regina scrunched her face, trying not to give in. But Emma saw a flicker of a smile. "What do you say, Regina? Truce? No trying to blow up the goddess?"

Regina huffed, but finally gave in. "Fine. She's safe." When Emma jerked her head, Regina looked over at the god and said, "I'm sorry I threatened you."

Aphrodite just nodded.

Emma leaned over to kiss Regina on the cheek. "Thank you." She whispered, then turned to the rest of the group. "So. I've got my memory back. Aphrodite's got her powers back. And I think it's best if we not talk any more about the not-so-magical magical plant. If there are no other loose ends, I think it's time we talk about how Regina and I are getting home to Storybrooke."


	8. Chapter 8

_"So. I've got my memory back. Aphrodite's got her powers back. And I think it's best if we not talk any more about the not-so-magical plant. If there are no other loose ends, I think it's time we talk about how Regina and I are getting home to Storybrooke."_

 

They were all sitting around the campfire. Gabrielle, and Aphrodite were sitting on a log. Emma and Regina sat next to each other on Regina's sleeping bag. Xena had gotten to her feet.

"That's right." Xena said. "Emma and Regina fulfilled their part of the deal. You're back at full power again, Aphrodite. So where is Ares? He should have been able to sense when you got your powers back. Why hasn't he showed up yet to send them home?"

"Oh, you know my brother." Aphrodite responded with a shrug. "He probably forgot and is off somewhere trying to pit two warlords against each other for sport. Or doing less savory things with less savory people. He's so reliable that way. Always forgetting to keep his promises once he gets his side of the deal."

"So, if he's not going to send us back, how are we getting home?" Emma asked, concerned. "We've been away from Henry for what, three days now? We need to get back before they start thinking we're dead or something."

"Four." Regina corrected quietly. "We left on Monday and today is Friday. We've been gone four days. Today will be the fifth."

There was silence for a minute, then Aphrodite raised a hand. "I can do it. I can send you home. It's the least I can do after you helped me. I really do appreciate it. You have no idea what trouble would have started if I hadn't gotten my powers back so soon. I can even help with your leg, Regina. Now that I'm at full power again it will be a snap."

Aphrodite snapped her fingers at the last word and Regina jumped as she felt a warm tingling in her calf. When it passed, she pulled up her pant leg and unwrapped the bandage. Where a few moments before there had been a bloody hole on each side of her leg, she now saw only a small scar where the arrow wound had been. The dull, throbbing pain was completely gone. She touched her finger to the spot. When she was satisfied that it really was fully healed she motioned for Emma to help her up. She stretched once she was on her feet, reveling in the feeling of standing on her own after being stuck sitting for so long. She took a few tentative steps before nodding her approval.

"Thank you, Aphrodite."

"It's my pleasure. I'm sure your family is worried enough with you being gone for so long. There's no need for you to suddenly reappear with a bloody arrow wound. There's nothing I can do about the scar, but it will be good as new otherwise. You won't even have a limp."

"Well," Xena clapped her hands together once, "we should get you on your way. Like Aphrodite said, I'm sure your families are worried about you."

"Do you want us to help you pack your things?" Gabrielle asked, waving her hand towards the sleeping bags and blankets Regina had conjured on their first night.

"Nah." Emma responded. "Why don't you two keep them. You'll get better use out of them than us. I don't know about Regina but I don't plan to be camping outside again for a long time.

"That's very generous of you. Thank you."

"Oh no, thank _you_." Regina said. "If we hadn't met you who knows how long it would have taken us to find a way home. We might still be wandering the countryside."

"You would have figured something out." Xena offered her hand to Emma. "I get the feeling nothing can keep you two away from where you want to be for very long."

Emma smirked as she grasped the warrior's hand. "I don't know about Regina, but I will always find-"

"Don't you dare finish that sentence, Emma Swan." Regina snapped sideways as she shook Gabrielle's hand. "Unless you want to be camping outside again a lot sooner than you thought. This time in the back yard."

Emma only went a little pale as she thought she heard a playful tone in Regina's voice. "Whoa, whoa. The back yard? You're joking, right? What about the couch?" Regina raised an eyebrow and gave Emma her best Evil Queen smirk as they switched places. Emma threw up her hands in surrender just in case Regina wasn't joking. "I take it back, I take it back!"

Regina chuckled as she took Xena's hand. She winked at the warrior and whispered, "Works every time." The warrior laughed in response.

"What was that about?" Gabrielle asked as she took Emma's hand.

"Old family joke. My family, not hers." Emma replied with a glance towards Regina. "I'd explain more, but that would just get me into more trouble. And I'd like to make it home alive."

"Maybe if you get a handle on those world jumping powers of yours you can come visit again sometime and tell me the full story." Gabrielle said with a smile.

"Oh, yes. You have to come back for a visit!" Aphrodite said excitedly as she stepped forward to pull both Emma and Regina into a hug. "At the very least send us an invitation for the big day."

"What big day?"

Aphrodite rolled her eyes as she released them and stepped back. "Your wedding, silly."

There was complete silence as Xena and Gabrielle took sudden interest in the trees around them and both Regina and Emma struggled to find words. Regina managed to compose herself first.

"Aphrodite, we're not engaged."

Aphrodite just smiled and winked at her. "Not yet. But like I said back at the temple, you two are crazy perfect for one another. Aren't you two living together already? After dating for just a few months? I figure it's only a matter of time."

"That's… we… we live together because of Henry and…" Emma stammered.

Aphrodite smiled sympathetically and patted Emma on the shoulder. "Oh don't worry, honey. You'll figure it out." She took another step back and rubbed her hands together. "Now then. Is there anyplace in particular you want me to drop you?"

Regina thought for a moment. "Henry has probably been staying at Snow and Charming's apartment. It's still pretty early in the day. They probably haven't left for the morning yet. If you can get us close to there…"

"Just picture it in your minds and I'll do the rest. It might help if you hold hands, too. Just to make sure you land in the same place. I don't do this very often so the trip might be a little rough."

Emma stepped over and took Regina's hand. "Well, I guess this is goodbye." She said to Xena, Gabrielle, and Aphrodite. "Thanks again for all your help."

"Any time." Xena said with a smile.

Gabrielle nodded. "Take care. Both of you."

"Ready?" Aphrodite asked.

Both women nodded and closed their eyes, concentrating on the sidewalk outside Snow and Charming's apartment. They heard Aphrodite snap her fingers, and the ground seemed to open up beneath their feet. They fell downwards, then they seemed to even out and felt like they were floating. There was a loud, rushing sound that seemed to last for a very long time. Then, as quickly as the floating feeling had started, they found themselves landing (on their feet this time) on hard concrete.

Regina was the first to open her eyes, and she let out a sigh of relief as she saw they had landed just a few yards from the door to the familiar apartment building.  She squeezed Emma's hand and the blonde finally un-scrunched her face and opened her eyes to look around. Emma let out a whoop and pulled Regina into a hug. "We made it! We're back!"

Regina laughed and hugged Emma back. "We did. Now, what do you say we go check on our son? I hope your parents haven't been giving him too much junk food." She released Emma from the hug and turned.

Before they could take a step towards the door, though, it opened and Snow walked out, followed by Henry. Snow had her head turned to talk to Henry over her shoulder as she pushed her way through the door.

"…I promise, Henry. They are out there somewhere. And we will find them. The blue fairy will come up with something."

"Well, I guess it's a good thing we found our own way back. If thatincompetent nun was our only hope, we'd have been trapped there forever." Regina couldn't help jabbing Snow with a sarcastic smirk.

"Moms!" Henry ran around his grandmother and practically jumped onto the two women in his excitement. He pulled them both into a hug so fast that their heads nearly knocked together. "You're back! Where have you been? It's been days. We thought Emma had accidentally blown you up or something at magic lessons!"

"Geez, thanks for the vote of confidence, kid." Emma tried to joke as she hugged Henry back. Regina raised her eyebrows at Emma over Henry's shoulder as if to say 'well, it was your fault'. Emma rolled her eyes and mouthed 'not now'.

"We're fine, Henry." Regina decided to say instead. "We're both fine. I'm sorry we scared you."

Henry nodded into their shoulders in response then hugged them tighter as if he was afraid they'd disappear again if he let go.

Still standing frozen near the door, Snow finally broke out of her shock. "Emma?"

"Hey, Snow. Did ya miss us?" Emma let go of Henry and caught Snow with her free arm as her mother jumped forward and pulled Emma into a fierce hug. Henry finally released his mothers and ducked out of Snow's way, but still eyed them both with worry. When she finally let go, Snow turned and pulled Regina into an equally fierce, if shorter, hug. Regina froze in surprise and looked to Emma for help, but the blonde just smiled at her. When Snow pulled away and took a step back she had tears in her eyes. Her eyes darted back and forth between the two women.

"We were so worried. We had no idea where you'd gone or what had happened! Where were you? Why are you dressed like that? Are you hurt?"

"We're both fine." Regina offered. "Emma… Uh, we accidentally got pulled into a different world and it took us a few days to find a way back. I'm sorry we worried you."

"A different world?" Henry jumped up and down with excitement, now recovered from his worry. "What world? Was it one I've heard of? What was it like?"

"We will tell you all about it later." Emma said with a smile. "But first I need a shower and a change of clothes."

Regina nodded. "So do I. We should go home and get cleaned up."

Both Henry and Snow looked nervous at the prospect of them being out of sight, so Emma suggested, "Snow, why don't you go tell Charming that we're back while Emma and I freshen up. We can meet you at Granny's in an hour or two? We can all have lunch and Regina and I can well you what happened."

"Ok. Sure." Snow still looked reluctant, but less so when she remembered that her husband didn't know the women were back yet.

"Henry, do you want to go with Snow, or come with Emma and I?" Regina didn't like the idea of letting Henry out of her sight, but she knew it should be his choice.

Henry still looked a little bit concerned and made his decision quickly. "I want to come with you."

"Ok." Regina tried not to smile too much.

"Do you want a ride home?" Snow offered.

"That would be lovely." Regina sighed. She didn't explain that her legs were still a bit stiff from barely being able to walk for almost a day. She didn't want to needlessly worry Henry.

Regina and Henry climbed into the back seat of Snow's car as Emma took the front. The drive was quiet. Snow kept  glancing over at Emma, and Emma kept glancing into the back seat. Regina kept her eyes mostly on Henry, but couldn't help but glance out the window as they drove by familiar buildings. None of them said anything. Before they knew it they were pulling up into the driveway of 108 Mifflin Street behind Regina's car.

As Regina, Henry, and Emma got out, Snow spoke. "I'll go over to the Sheriff's station and tell Charming the good news. We'll see you in a little while at Granny's." It was more of a question than a statement.

"We'll be there." Emma confirmed. "Oh, and Snow. Can we keep it just the five of us? No big welcome home party or anything, ok?"

Snow looked a little disappointed, but nodded. "Ok. Just us. I can't promise that a crowd won't form once we get there, but I won't call everyone just yet."

Snow backed out of the driveway and waved before driving away. Henry led the way to the front door. He ran up the front steps and pulled out his key to unlock door. Emma and Regina followed behind at a slower pace.

Both Emma and Regina sighed as they walked in to the familiar foyer. The vases of flowers that Regina always kept on either side of the open dining room door were wilted. They're stems were bent and some of the pedals of the white flowers had fallen onto the accent tables the vases were sitting on. Other than that the house was exactly as they'd left it. Emma saw her red leather jacket thrown over the back of a chair in the study. She'd tossed it there the Sunday night when she'd stomped in from a long, frustrating day searching for Mrs. Hubbard's dog. She smiled as she remembered that Regina hadn't scolded her for leaving it there instead of hanging it up. She had simply poured them each a glass of cider and listened as Emma had vented about having to chase the mutt around the block four times before she'd caught him.

"I'm going to go play my Xbox." Henry announced, suddenly much more relaxed now that all three of them were in the house. He kicked his shoes off and walked towards the living room.

"You can shower first." Emma offered. "I'm going to go get a glass of water."

"Ok." Regina gave Emma a tired smile and began climbing the stairs.

Emma walked through the house to the kitchen. She pulled a glass from the cupboard and filled it from the sink. She sat at the kitchen table and gazed out at the back yard as she sipped the water. She lost track of time as she looked out at the apple tree in the middle of the back yard, occasionally sipping from her glass.

Nearly fifteen minutes later, Henry let out a loud "Yes! Take that!" from across the house that startled Emma back to reality. She stood and put her empty glass in the sink before wandering back though the house and up the stairs.

Regina came out of the bathroom in a robe just as Emma entered the bedroom. "The shower is all yours." Regina motioned towards the bathroom door. Emma just nodded and walked into the bathroom, closing the door behind her.

When Emma emerged twenty minutes later, the bedroom was empty. She quickly got dressed in a pair of jeans and a tee shirt and pulled her mostly dry hair back into a pony tail. Then she went looking for her family.

She found Regina downstairs in the living room with Henry. Henry was sitting on the floor with a controller in his hands. He was playing some sort of car racing game and his whole body tilted every time the car on the screen turned a bend in the road. Regina was sitting on the couch watching the screen. She looked up as Emma walked over and sat next to her. Emma scooted over and slipped her arm around Regina's waist. 

Regina sighed and leaned over to rest her head on Emma's shoulder.

"Hi." Emma bumped Regina's leg with her own.

"Hello." Regina said softly.

"You sound tired."

Regina closed her eyes as she nodded. "It's been a long few days. Everything is finally catching up with me I think."

"We don't have to go to lunch. I could call Snow and ask them to meet us for dinner instead. I'm sure they'd understand."

"No, I'm ok. I don't think Henry would wait that long without hearing what happened. And I'd rather not go over it all twice."

"Ok. If you're sure you're feeling up to it."

"I am." Regina said softly, then whispered, almost to herself, "Besides…"

When she didn't continue, Emma looked down at her. "Besides?"

Regina lifted her head from Emma's shoulder and said, "Nothing. Never mind. You'll think it's corny."

Emma raised her free hand. "I promise I won't laugh. Scouts honor."

"You were never a girl scout." Regina evaded.

"True. But tell me anyway."

Regina hesitated, trying to think of the best way to explain what she was thinking. "We haven't had a lot of time together over the past few days. Most of the few times we were alone you didn't remember us. And we were so far away from Henry. We have to tell everyone what happened and where we were. I understand that. But after lunch I want to spend the rest of the day just the three of us. As a family. Before real life starts again. Even if that just means sitting on the couch watching our son play video games all afternoon."

By the time Regina was finished talking, Emma was smiling from ear to ear. "That doesn't sound cheesy at all. That sounds perfect." She leaned over and kissed Regina. "In fact, today is Friday, right? Why don't we just make it a whole weekend thing?"

Regina smiled and pulled Emma in for another kiss.

"Ewww! Moms!"

They broke apart and turned to their son, who had turned around from the TV. He had thrown his hand over his eyes dramatically and the part of his face that wasn't covered by his hand was scrunched up in a grimace.

"Do you have a problem with me kissing your mother, Henry?" Regina asked.

Henry peeked through his fingers, then lowered his hand. "No. I'd just rather you didn't do it in front of me. Watching your parents kiss is gross."

Emma rolled her eyes. "It was just a kiss, kid. You have no idea how lucky you are." When Regina gave Emma a questioning look, Emma replied simply, "Tacos."

Regina laughed, remembering the time Emma and Henry had walked in on Snow and Charming after returning from the Enchanted Forest.

"It's not funny, Regina. I'm going to be scared for life." Emma's reply only made Regina laugh more.

"Hello? Earth to moms." Henry interrupted the laughter. "I have no idea what tacos have to do with kissing, but isn't it time to go to Granny's?"

Regina glanced behind Henry and noticed that the TV was off. "Oh, right. Are you done with your game?"

Henry nodded. "Yeah. I'm hungry."

"Me too." Emma agreed as she stood. "I am in desperate need of French fries and caffeine."

"Well then. We'd better get going." Regina stood. "I'll drive."

Once again Henry ran ahead of them. He had his shoes on and was out the door in record time.

Emma held Regina back for a moment just inside the front door.

"So, are we ever going to talk about the fact that you broke the memory spell with true love's kiss?"

Regina chuckled. "I should have known you weren't going to let that little detail go. Later? After Henry goes to bed?"

Emma nodded. "As long as we talk about it."

"Oh, I'm sure you won't let me forget." Regina smiled. "Now, let's go tell some fairy tale characters about our accidental trip to meet some television characters and gods, shall we?"

"Yes." Emma agreed. "Let's."

 

 

_The End_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, there we have it. The very last chapter. Thanks to all of you who stuck with me to the end of this crazy adventure. It's been a lot of fun writing this one, and a huge learning experience. 
> 
> There wont be an epilogue (there is a strange and confusing story behind why, but I wont bore you with it), but I have already started brainstorming potential ideas for a sequel because these characters are too fun to just let wander off into the ether. Let me know if you'd be interested in a sequel in the comments. Encouragement and constructive criticism is always welcome.


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